Our first look at Olean came a week later than expected, and the result was less then favorable for the home faithful. The expansion Oilers were supposed to host Niagara for Opening Day exactly one week ago tonight, but that game had to be rescheduled due to rain. The damper for Niagara on this night came from the Olean bats and the uncertainty related to the status of starting pitcher Wilson Kirby.
Kirby left the game pre-maturely in the 3rd inning in obvious pain with a shoulder injury that could sideline the young right-hander for some time. After delivering the second ptich of an at-bat to Olean first-basemen Joe Chitester, Kirby doubled over behind the mound and was unable to continue. His health was foremost on the minds of all those involved with Power Baseball for the remainder of the night.
As for the baseball game, Niagara found themselves in a 4-1 hole early. The deficit would grow to 10-2 by the time the home team came to bat in the bottom of the 7th.
The Power bats came to life in the 8th and 9th innings to make a game of it, but Niagara would ultimately fall to Olean by a score of 10-5.
The bright spots on the night for the boys in white came primarily from the Niagara backstops and center-fielder Neil DeCook. DeCook ended the night with a triple, a run scored and two stolen bases. DeCook brought home the first run of the game on a sacrifice fly by Adam Taylor after walking and stealing both second and third.
Starting Pitcher Brandon Nemeti made the lead stick for Olean, allowing only one earned run on three hits through 6 2/3 innings pitched. He did not surrender Niagara’s first hit of the baseball game until the bottom of the 5th inning.
It was Spencer Bowles who secured the first hit for the Power. Bowles eventually scored in the inning to cap a 1 for 2 night with an RBI to go along with that run scored in the 5th. It was an emotional night for Spencer also, as he played in memory of a dear friend who lost his life in an accident earlier in the week.
Frank Polino, who replaced Spencer Bowles in the middle innings, reached base in both plate appearances and scored two runs, as Niagara tried to rally late. Three runs across the final three frames would not be enough, however, to keep the Power’s undefeated record in tact.
Niagara now possesses a (2-1) mark on the season (1-1 in League Play). The team begins a four game road slate tomorrow before returning to Sal Maglie for an extended homestand on Thursday June 14th.
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