Bo Shinkle of the Lima Locos hits against the Michigan Monarchs during Thursday’s game at Simmons Field.
Richard Parrish | The Lima News
LIMA – On Thursday night the Locos bats continued to stay hot at Simmons Field.
After registering 10 hits in a season-opening loss to Michigan on Tuesday, the Locos (1-2) registered 10 more hits and picked up their first win of the season, beating the Monarchs (2-1) 12-3.
Michigan put one run on the board in the first, but once the Locos erased that deficit, they never trailed again.
“Our hitters came out tonight with a good approach and we had success with it,” said Locos coach Chad Ehrnsberger. “We struggled yesterday and the guys took what we talked about to heart, so that’s a good sign.”
Jaxin Settlemires, an outfielder from the University of Memphis, has stood out so far in the lineup as the only Loco to record a hit in all three games. Settlemires scored twice in the win while collecting two more singles. His RBI single in the sixth inning gave the Locos a 12-2 advantage.
“I’m feeling good in the box right now,” Settemires said. “I’m trying to keep everything slow, keep the heartbeat down and capitalize when the pitcher makes a mistake.”
Backing up the hot bats was a strong pitching performance from Carter Parks (St Johns River) and Cody Soliday (Mercer) who combined for eight innings of work. Soliday entered with two outs in the fourth and closed the door on the Monarchs.
“That’s the most pitches (Carter) Parks has thrown all spring (3 2/3 innings, 72 pitches). To see him work that late in the game was good to see and he threw a lot of strikes,” said Ehrnsberger. “(Cody) Soliday walked his first batter on four pitches, but after that, he was in total control and that’s what I expected from both guys.”
Through 4 1/3 innings of work, Soliday no-hit Michigan and struck out four batters. Outfielder Liam Richards (Yavapai) pitched the ninth inning for the Locos.
Michigan starter Cole Gebbon (Western Michigan) was charged with the loss after lasting just 2 1/3 innings and allowing six earned runs on six hits.
Monarchs spoil Locos home opener
LIMA — The start to Tuesday night’s home opener was exactly what the Locos had hoped for. The finish, however, was a very different story.
After taking a 7-2 lead through four innings, the Locos (0-1) allowed the Michigan Monarchs (1-0) to plate 10 runs in the final three innings in a 12-8 loss at Simmons Field.
Michigan tied the game with five two-out runs in the seventh inning, then struck again for four more runs after Luke Geske struck out the first two hitters in the eighth inning.
“You have to give their guys credit. They had a lot of two-out, two-strike hits,” said Locos coach Chad Ehrnsberger. “We did a great job getting ahead in the count and they did a great job of winning the at-bat. At the end of the day, that’s what matters.”
The Locos stranded 19 baserunners in the loss, including four different times Monarchs pitchers escaped the inning with the bases loaded.
“Our message to the guys was to take note of their two-out approaches and compare them to ours,” Ehrnsberger said. “Their approach was better tonight, but as long as we learn from this, it’s a productive day.”
Geske, a right-handed pitcher from Sarasota, Florida, took the loss after allowing four earned runs on three hits in 1 1/3 innings.
Austin Fisher, a native of Rochester, Michigan, was credited with the victory after pitching two scoreless innings, working around three hits and a walk, and striking out four batters.
The Locos scored three runs in the first inning off Logan McLaughlin, the Monarchs starting pitcher from Milford, Michigan. Two of those runs were unearned due to a pair of Michigan errors. Blake Bowen (Wooster, Ohio) had one of three hits in the inning for the Locos and was credited with the lone RBI.
Ehrnsberger handed the ball to Matteo Pare of Lasalle, Ontario for the start and Pare went four innings, allowed two earned runs in the third and limited the Monarchs to five hits in the no-decision. Pare finished his start with a 1-2-3 fourth inning.
“He dominated during the spring where he was at and we’re going to see a whole lot more of that,” Ehrnsberger said of his starter. “Tonight we didn’t want to run his pitch count too high, but a couple of weeks from now he’ll be going deeper into games.”
Top Performers
Michigan Monarchs 12, Lima Locos 8
• Blake Bowen (University of Kentucky) went 2 for 3, drew two walks, drove in a run and scored three times.
• Bo Shinkle (Kent State University) reached base four times, going 2 for 4 with a pair of walks and drove in a pair of runs.
Michigan Monarchs 3, Lima Locos 1
• Andrew Stechschulte (Ohio Northern University) worked around one hit to toss a scoreless eighth inning with one strikeout.
• Jaxin Settlemires (University of Memphis) went 1 for 4 with a walk in a game where the Locos were limited to four hits.
Lima Locos 12, Michigan Monarchs 3
• Cody Soliday (Mercer University) picked up the win after tossing 4 1/3 innings in relief, limiting the Monarchs to one unearned run and striking out four hitters.
• Blake Bowen (University of Kentucky) went 2 for 5, drove in three runs and scored a run.
• Justin Gorski (Miami University) reached base safely four times out of the leadoff spot on one hit and three walks. He scored all four times and drove in one run in the win.
GLCL STANDINGS
Team`Record
Xenia Scouts`2-1
Michigan Monarchs`2-1
Hamilton Joes`2-1
Lima Locos`1-2
Grand Lake Mariners`1-2
S Ohio Copperheads`1-2
Muskegon Clippers`0-0
RESULTS AND SCHEDULE
Tuesday
Michigan Monarchs 12, Lima Locos 8
Hamilton Joes 7, Grand Lake Mariners 4
S Ohio Copperheads 7, Xenia Scouts 5
Wednesday
Michigan Monarchs 3, Lima Locos 1
Hamilton Joes 7, Grand Lake Mariners 6
Thursday
Lima Locos 12, Michigan Monarchs 3
Grand Lake Mariners 3, Hamilton Joes 2
Xenia Scouts 6, S Ohio Copperheads 4
Xenia Scouts 10, S Ohio Copperheads 2
Friday
Games ended after The Lima News deadline. Find scores, game stories, photos and more on LimaScores.com.
Lima Locos at Muskegon Clippers, 7:05 p.m.
Grand Lake Mariners at S Ohio Copperheads, 7:05 p.m.
Xenia Scouts at Hamilton Joes, 7:05 p.m.
Saturday
Lima Locos at Muskegon Clippers, 7:05 p.m.
Grand Lake Mariners at S Ohio Copperheads, 5:05 p.m.
Xenia Scouts at Hamilton Joes, 7:05 p.m.
Sunday
Lima Locos at Muskegon Clippers, 4:05 p.m.
S Ohio Copperheads at Grand Lake Mariners, 4:05 p.m.
Hamilton Joes at Xenia Scouts, 7:05 p.m.
Tuesday, June 11
Grand Lake Mariners at Xenia Scouts, 7:05 p.m.
S Ohio Copperheads at Michigan Monarchs, 7:05 p.m.
Muskegon Clippers at Hamilton Joes, 7:05 p.m.
Wednesday, June 12
Grand Lake Mariners at Xenia Scouts, 7:05 p.m.
S Ohio Copperheads at Michigan Monarchs, 7:05 p.m.
Muskegon Clippers at Hamilton Joes, 7:05 p.m.
Thursday, June 13
Grand Lake Mariners at Xenia Scouts, 7:05 p.m.
Muskegon Clippers at Hamilton Joes, 7:05 p.m.
S Ohio Copperheads at Michigan Monarchs, 8:05 p.m.
Friday, June 14
Lima Locos at S Ohio Copperheads, 7:05 p.m.
Grand Lake Mariners at Muskegon Clippers, 7:05 p.m.
Michigan Monarchs at Xenia Scouts, 7:05 p.m.
