Mudcats drop series finale 3-2 at Buies Creek

BUIES CREEK, N.C. - Trey Supak worked through a quality start and struck out seven over six innings, but the Carolina offense was held without a run scoring hit in a 3-2 series finale loss to the Astros on Thursday night at Jim Perry Stadium.

The loss dropped the Mudcats (4-4, 40-36) into a 3-1 series loss to the Astros (4-4, 41-37) and to a 4-4 record in their second half opening, eight game road trip. The Astros led first in Thursday's series finale in Buies Creek, but Carolina eventually tied it at 2-2 after three before the Astros later brought across the go-ahead run in the seventh.
Yonder Alvarez drove in the first Buies Creek run with a RBI double in the first and Spencer Johnson drove in the second with a solo home run in the second. Both run scoring hits were allowed by Supak, but were only two of the five hits given up by the Carolina starter.
Supak turned in his first quality start with the Mudcats on Thursday after allowing just two runs on five hits over six innings. He left after the sixth and finished with four walks and seven strikeouts while reaching 88 pitches with 56 going for strikes.
The Mudcats trailed 2-0 until both Luis Aviles Jr. and Corey Ray walked and scored runs in the third to tie the game. Aviles was forced over from second to third on an infield hit by Jake Gatewood and managed to score on the same play after a throwing error by third baseman Randy César. Moments later, Ray then came across for the tying run on a wild pitch lost by Buies Creek starter Brett Adcock.
The two run third accounted for all of Carolina's scoring in the game and the Astros later broke the tie with a run in the seventh off Carolina's Quintin Torres-Costa. Taylor Jones drove in Myles Straw with a two-out RBI single in the seventh while giving the Astros their eventual game winning run.
Torres-Costa (6-3, 3.54) started the seventh by walking Straw and walked two overall while allowing a run and three hits over two innings and took the loss. He also struck out four in the game out of the bullpen .
Adcock pitched through the first four frames for Buies Creek, but left after reaching 85 pitches (51 strikes) early in the game. Adcock gave up three hits, allowed two runs (one earned), walked four and struck out seven in his four inning start.
Reliever Cristian Javier followed out of the bullpen and eventually earned the victory after holding the Mudcats scoreless over the next four innings. Javier (1-0, 0.00) struck out six and allowed just two hits in his appearance. 
Justin Ferrell (S, 1) later worked the ninth and struck out two while working through a scoreless inning and earning his first save of the season.
The Mudcats struck out 15 times in the loss and were just 1-for-13 with runners in scoring position. They also left seven men on base and finished the series by scoring just three combined runs over the final two games at Buies Creek.
UP NEXT: The Mudcats return home from their second half opening, eight game road trip on Friday night with game one of a four game series versus the Winston-Salem Dash at Five County Stadium. Friday's game will feature Carolina League All-Star Cody Ponce (6-5, 3.36) starting for the Mudcats and will begin at 7:00 p.m. It will also be followed by post-game fireworks, presented by Golden East Crossing Mall in Rocky Mount. The game will air on the Mudcats Radio Network, The Big Dawg 98.5 FM and online at carolinamudcats.com via TuneIn Radio.
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