Voyagers Take Advantage of PaddleHeads Miscues in 7-3 Loss

Great Falls, MT- The Missoula PaddleHeads held the lead for the first three innings in action Friday night opposite the Great Falls Voyagers. With Nick Merkel on the mound, the PaddleHeads looked to be in good position to win their third game in as many nights at Centene Stadium. The winds would begin to shift to the opposition's side in the bottom of the frame however.

In large part due to a pair of errors, the Voyagers would knot things up at 2 in the bottom of the fourth to change momentum in the game. Once Great Falls seized momentum, they would never let it slip the rest of the way outscoring the PaddleHeads 7-1 down the stretch to take game 4 of the series by a tally of 7-2. In the process, the Voyagers evened the 6 game slate at 2 games apiece. 

Missoula grabbed the early advantage in the second inning thanks to Henderson Perez who doubled home Jared Akins to make the score 1-0 early. Later in the fourth, Akins would come around to score on a wild pitch that allowed the PaddleHeads to grab a 2 run lead early. The early lead would evaporate quickly however as the PaddleHeads would only score once more the rest of the way. 

Lukas Polanko would get Great Falls on the board with an RBI single in the fourth inning. Collin Runge would also score on the play due to a throwing error in that same sequence which allowed the Voyagers to tie the game at 2 runs apiece. 

Breydon Daniel would give Great Falls their first lead in the next half inning with an RBI single to bring home Myles Mckisic. Once out in front, the Voyagers would never give up the lead again. Daniel would finish the night 2-for-4 with an RBI. 

Despite only allowing 1 earned run through 5, Merkel would be tagged with his first loss of the season in 5 innings of work. The Spokane product struck out 5 in those innings while allowing 5 hits. With Missoula's offense struggling to get much going on the other side however, the effort would prove to not be enough. 

Mckisic would keep things rolling for the Voyagers in the sixth with an RBI single to extend their advantage to 4-2. It would be a highlight night for the Georgia Gwinnett product who finished 3-for-4 with an RBI and a pair of runs scored. 

Thanks to 5 walks issued in the seventh inning, the Voyagers would continue to extend their lead. Free passes would prove to be an issue all game long for the PaddleHeads who would walk 8 over the course of the game. 

Akins would start off the 7th with a single to kick off the final inning in which the PaddleHeads scored a run. Alex Ludwick would later single home a run in the frame to round out the scoring for the PaddleHeads to make the score 4-3. Akins had a solid night at the dish in the loss finishing 3-for-4 with a run scored. Ludwick also chipped in finishing 1-for-3. 

Riley Jepson, and Jake Malec gave the Voyagers breathing room in the eighth with a single, and a sacrifice fly to make the score 7-3. Having recorded the final out in the previous inning, Montana Quigly also pitched a clean ninth to earn his seventh save to close things out. Quigly now leads the Pioneer League in saves (7). 

Missoula (33-12) will look to gain an advantage in the 6 game set once again on Saturday evening in game 5 opposite Great Falls (27-18). Action from Centene Stadium is set to begin at 7:00 p.m. Hear the action on ESPN Missoula 102.9 F.M.