NORWICH, Conn. – Danny Hudzina and Jeremy Martinez each produced doubles, but that was the only offense for the State College Spikes on Tuesday as they fell to the Connecticut Tigers, 2-0, at Thomas J. Dodd Stadium.
The Spikes (18-7) were held out of the hit column until Hudzina put a ball off the left-center field wall to lead off the sixth inning. In the eighth, Martinez delivered a two-base hit down the right-field line with two outs, but was stranded there to end the frame.
The defeat ended a five-game winning streak for State College, but the Spikes still hold the best record in the New York-Penn League with nearly a third of the season complete.
Connecticut (16-9) took the lead in the second inning when Blaise Salter led off with a double and scored on Josh Lester’s single to right. The Tigers then extended their lead in the fifth when Mario Sanjur singled, moved to second on a Cesar Gonzalez base hit, and scored on Cole Bauml’s sacrifice fly to center.
Bryan Dobzanski (2-2) started on the mound for the Spikes and took the loss. Dobzanski yielded both Connecticut runs on six hits and three walks while striking out three batters.
Jordan DeLorenzo then took over with two perfect innings, recording two strikeouts, and Robby Rowland struck out all three batters he faced in his second appearance on Minor League rehab assignment with the Spikes.
Tigers starter Austin Sodders retired the first nine batters of the game, two via strikeout, over his three innings on the hill. Reliever Oswaldo Castillo (1-0) then earned the win as he allowed just one walk and struck out three over two innings as the next man in for Connecticut.
The Spikes look to bounce back and take their seventh straight series victory with a day game to finish a three-game set in Connecticut on Wednesday. First pitch is set to fly at 11:05 a.m. at Thomas J. Dodd Stadium. Left-hander Dewin Perez (2-0) makes his first start of the year for State College after recording a 1.10 ERA over five relief appearances this season. The Tigers will go with right-hander Kyle Funkhouser (0-0) on the mound.
Thursday, the Spikes return home to Medlar Field at Lubrano Park to start a three-game series against the Mahoning Valley Scrappers (Cleveland Indians). The trio of 7:05 p.m. games will include some of the biggest promotions of the season, with $1 Beer Thursday presented by BIG Froggy 101, Ghostbusters Night featuring a “State Puft Marshmallow Men”-Themed Jersey-off-the-Back-Auction presented by PSECU to benefit Children’s Miracle Network on Friday, and the return of the Cowboy Monkey Rodeo presented by Stone Valley Construction, LLC on Saturday.
Tickets to all three games, as well as every game on the Spikes’ 2016 home schedule, are currently on sale through the Spikes Box Office by calling (814) 272-1711 or by visiting in person. Fans can also buy and print single-game tickets by visiting StateCollegeSpikes.com.
Catch all of the action on Wednesday via the Spikes Radio Network, presented by Penn State Health, at 10:50 a.m. with Spikes Live, presented by Mount Nittany Health, on the air from Dodd Stadium. The Spikes’ radio broadcast can also be heard worldwide through the “Listen Live” link on StateCollegeSpikes.com, provided by the club’s flagship radio home, Newsradio 1390 WRSC, as well as the TuneIn Radio app.
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