Late Rally by Shuckers Not Enough in 5-4 Defeat

PEARL, MS – The Mississippi Braves (17-21) used a four-run second inning to defeat the Biloxi Shuckers (18-20) 5-4 on Saturday night at Trustmark Park.

Biloxi jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning after a pair of RBI singles from Thomas Dillard and Tristen Lutz. Michael Harris II answered right back in the bottom half of the frame. The Braves’ No. 1 prospect homered to straight away centerfield off Noah Zavolas (L, 0-1) to cut the deficit in half.

The M-Braves carried that momentum into the second inning. Drew Lugbauer hit a solo-home run the opposite way to left-field to tie the game at two. Four of the next five batters would record a hit off Zavolas, including an RBI single from Riley Delgado and a double from Harris II. In total, the Braves sent eight batters to the plate in the frame and scored four runs on five hits. Zavolas would finish strong, allowing just one baserunner in his final 1 2/3 on the hill.

After Joey Wiemer tallied a single and a double in his first two at-bats, the center fielder crushed his team-leading 11th home run of the season to pull the Shuckers within two runs. Wiemer finished with a season-high four hits and fell just a triple shy of the cycle. The Brewers’ No. 2 prospect also collected his tenth stolen base of the season as well.

Biloxi came close to overcoming the 5-3 deficit the seventh inning. With runners on second and third with two outs, Dillard lined a ball down the third base line to plate Gabe Holt. Felix Valerio attempted to score from second when Harris II fired a throw towards home on one hop to gun down Valerio and hold the M-Braves lead.

Tanner Gordon (W, 1-2) recorded his first career Double-A win after striking out seven batters in five innings. Justin Maese (S, 7) retired the Shuckers in order in the ninth inning to seal the M-Braves third victory of the series.

The Shuckers and M-Braves finish a six-game series on Sunday afternoon at Trustmark Park. LHP Nick Bennett (2-3, 5.03) and LHP Jared Shuster (2-3 2.25) for Mississippi square off in a pitching rematch of game one. First pitch is set for 2:05 PM and the game can be seen on MiLB.TV and heard locally on WGCM AM 1240/FM 100.9 or online here. Individual tickets, Shuck Nation Memberships, Flex Plans and group outings are available for the 2022 season by calling (228) 233-3465 or visiting biloxishuckers.com.