PEARL, MS -- The Mississippi Braves (7-18, 41-54) finally got that elusive first home win since the all-star break in dramatic fashion, defeating the Biloxi Shuckers (11-15, 47-48) by a score of 3-2 in walk-off fashion. Starters Mike Soroka and Luis Ortiz turned in an epic duel, retiring the first 18 batters
PEARL, MS -- The Mississippi Braves (7-18, 41-54) finally got that elusive first home win since the all-star break in dramatic fashion, defeating the Biloxi Shuckers (11-15, 47-48) by a score of 3-2 in walk-off fashion.
Starters Mike Soroka and Luis Ortiz turned in an epic duel, retiring the first 18 batters combined for a quick three innings to start game one of a five game series. In the fourth, Austin Riley got his first hit as an M-Brave at Trustmark Park with a two-out single, but he was stranded at first.
Soroka was perfect through four innings, but a bloop single to start the fifth ended that bid. Jacob Nottingham followed with a triple, giving Biloxi a 1-0 lead. The next batter scored Nottingham on a sacrifice fly to center, giving the Shuckers two runs on just two hits.
That's all they would manage against Soroka, as the Braves' No. 4 prospect went seven innings with just two hits and two runs, adding 12 strikeouts with no walks.
In the home half of the seventh, Mississippi finally broke through against reliever Josh Uhen. The M-Braves led off with four straight singles, scoring two runs, before Uhen recorded an out. A fifth single loaded the bases, and the Shuckers went to the pen. Right-hander Tayler Scott got out of the one-out jam without allowing a run to score, keeping the game tied at two apiece.
With two outs in the bottom of the ninth and nobody on, Travis Demeritte delivered a single through the right side to keep the home team's chances alive. Up stepped Kade Scivicque. The Cajun catcher fell behind 0-2 to lefty sidearm reliever Quintin Torres-Costa, and it looked as if the M-Braves were headed to extras, but Scivicque blasted a double to the wall in left-center, scoring the winning run from first base.
Corbin Clouse got the victory for Mississippi, pitching a hitless eighth and ninth inning in his first appearance at the Double-A level. He struck out four and walked one.
Game two is set for 7:00 PM Thursday night at Trustmark Park.
Biloxi: 2-2-0
Mississippi: 3-9-0
WP: Clouse
LP: Torres-Costa
Attn: 2,150
Time: 2:22
