Voyagers Sweep Twin Bill Saturday Opposite PaddleHeads

MISSOULA, MT- The Missoula PaddleHeads and Great Falls Voyagers would play in a double header on Saturday evening at Allegiance Field at Ogren Park. Both contests would play out with contrasting styles. Game 1 featured fabulous starting pitching in a low scoring affair that came down to the wire. Missoula and Great Falls would then score 12 runs combined in the first 2 innings of game 2 as both offenses would find success. Despite seeing both games play out very differently, that would not mean there would be contrasting victors in the double header. 

Both teams would scratch runs across in late inning clutch situations in game 1 sending the contest to a 'Knockout' round. Thanks to Devin Hurdle's 3 home run effort in round 1, Great Falls would be awarded a win. The Voyagers would then get rolling offensively throughout game 2 tallying 13 hits as a team. Great Falls would also see a fabulous pitching performance out of the pen be a big factor holding Missoula scoreless in the final 5 innings. The end result would be a 10-5 win in game 2 allowing the Voyagers to come away with a sweep of the twin bill. 

Nick Marshall of the Voyagers, and Dawson Day of the PaddleHeads would dictate the tone of game 1 on the mound in 2 fabulous outings. Day would strike out the first 4 batters he faced on the hill on his way to a fabulous outing in 4 innings. The Oregon native would allow just 1 hit in those frames while striking out 7. 

Marshall had the strikeout working from his perspective as well fanning 8 batters in 6 innings of work allowing just 1 run for the Voyagers. Both teams would find ways to scratch runs across late to send the game to a knockout. 

Caden Green would be a part of both sequences in which Great Falls scored in game 1. Green would score on a single in the 5th off the bat of Hylan Hall after leading off the frame with a triple. In the 7th, the Auburn product would then knock in the lead run with a single making the score 2-1 on a base hit to right. A clutch at-bat from Missoula however ensured that a knockout round would be needed. Green finished 2-for-4 in game 1. 

Cameron Thompson would come up big for the PaddleHeads in the bottom of the 7th to tie the game. The 4th year PaddleHead would send Collin Runge racing to the plate with a double to right center making the score 2-2. Thompson would reach twice in regulation finishing 1-for-2. Missoula would see things go against them in the knockout round however that followed this sequence. Great Falls clearly would take momentum with them into the next contest.

The Voyagers would jump to a lead right from the start in game 2 of the double header thanks to a 4-run rally in the top of the 1st. Shortstop Jack Lynch delivered the big blow in the inning with a 3-run home run to right center making the score 4-0. Great Falls would tally 7 runs in the first 2 innings to jump to an advantage. Missoula would hang with this effort in the early going to stay in the game. 

Extra base hits would keep the PaddleHeads in contention in the first 2 frames. Runge would hit a 2-run blast as part of a 3-run rally in the 1st that would trim the Great Falls lead to 4-3. Colin Gordon would knock in the 3rd run of the frame with a double of his own. After another rally from Great Falls in the 2nd, more success with the long ball would keep Missoula in it. 

Kamron Willman would send a line drive over the left field wall in the 2nd to trim the lead to 7-5. The former Twins product finished 2-for-3 in game 2 with a pair of RBIs. Despite starting things off on the right foot, a reliever from the Voyagers pen would ensure this success would not continue. 

Lefthander Steven Washilewski would turn in a sensational effort out of the bullpen in 4 shutout innings to earn the win for Great Falls. The Indiana native would retire 9 batters consecutively in one stretch from the 3rd through the 5th of game 2. Washileski would not allow a single run in his time on the hill, striking out 7. The southpaw would receive all the support he would need in the 4th and 6th. 

Xane Washington would knock in a run with a single in the 4th sparking a 2-run rally to extend the Voyager's lead back to 4. The Voyagers center fielder would later score on a ground out to first in the frame making the score 9-5. The 2nd year Voyager would finish with 3 RBIs in game 2 as part of a 2-for-4 performance. 

After leading off the 6th with a double, Hall would score on another RBI groundout to wind out the scoring in the 6th inning. Hall would tally 2 hits in the win finishing 2-for-4 with an RBI. The Bethune-Cookman product has been productive in his at-bats this week finishing with 12 RBIs against the PaddleHeads. After mounting momentum to this point, The Voyagers will now look to put a stamp on a solid week of work in the series finale Sunday. 

Great Falls (28-49) will bring a 3-game roll with them into the finale of a 6-game slate in Missoula opposite the PaddleHeads (55-22). Sunday's contest will also be the final time these 2 teams meet in the regular season in a game in Missoula. First pitch of a Matinee affair is scheduled for 2:15 p.m. Join the PaddleHeads at the ballpark for a 'Kids Free Sunday' or listen to all the action live on ESPN Missoula 102.9 F.M. and 1029espn.com.