Middlesex evens series with 1-0 win

Lexington – The Middlesex Expos turned the tables on Lexington and won their own 1-0 game Wednesday night at Minuteman Vocational Technical High School in Lexington.

The win evened the series at 1-1. Game three will be held at Lexington High School if the field is playable. If it is not playable the teams will return to Minuteman Tech.

The Expos got on the board in the bottom of the fifth. Aidan Sengenberger reached on an error to start the inning.  After a strikeout, Manny Castro grounded a ball into the shortstop hole, Blue Sox shortstop Charlie Walsh made a sliding stop and tried to get Sengenberger at second, but his throw was late. Jose Paulino then blooped a ball down the right field line that dropped in fair, and Sengenberger raced home with the game’s only run.

Matt Donovan started for Middlesex and pitched a 3-hit complete-game shutout. He walked four and struck out six. Donovan set down eight straight Blue Sox from the third through sixth innings. He only allowed two Sox runners to reach in the sixth when Max Dushney singled and Jake McElroy walked to put runners on first and second. A fly ball out to center allowed Dushney to move to third, the second Blue Sox to reach third. Pinch-hitter Julian Alvarez hit into a fielder’s choice to end the threat.

Lexington starter Ryan O’Rourke pitched a 2-hitter over six innings. The southpaw walked two and struck out seven. He set down 10 of 11 Expos from the first through fourth innings.

The only extra-base hit in game two was a first-inning double by Lexington’s Ben Leonard.

The offense has been tough to generate for both teams in the first two games of the series. The Expos and Blue Sox have combined for two runs, 12 hits, and two extra-base hits. The five pitchers used, have combined for 32 strikeouts in 28.2 innings.

By Bruce Hack, Lexington Team Historian