ELYRIA, Ohio (May 5, 2023) -- The Pirates dropped the front half of a two-game home-and-home against the Elyria Catholic Panthers, as they lost 6-0.

The Panthers scored in 4-of-6 innings, leveraging a home run and seven walks in a game in which they were outhit 8-4. Catcher Taylor Belza went 2-for-2 with a homer, walk, and two RBIs. Belza's battery mates -- two EC hurlers -- combined to yield just two walks, while fanning seven.

Those Panther pitchers worked out of jams in the fourth and sixth frames but otherwise kept a River attack under wraps. The shutout loss marked Rocky River's fourth of the season.

River's pitching was handled by Thomas Rossi (four innings), Julian Patti (2 IP), and Gavin O'Brien (1 IP). Anthony Ferchill (2-for-3, stolen base) and Hudson Wissman (3-for-3) were the top Pirate batters in the Great Lakes Conference road affair.

The Pirates (5-12, 1-4 GLC West) are scheduled to host Elyria Catholic Saturday.


by Skip Snow

# # # River # # #