CAPITALES PUSH WASHINGTON TO THE BRINK WITH TWO LATE HOMERS
WRITTEN BY: MIKE GUISTOLISE
QUÉBEC CITY - Behind two big home runs in the seventh inning, the Québec Capitales took game three of the Frontier League Championship Series 8-6 over the Washington Wild Things at Stade Canac on Friday night.
The win now puts Québec one away from making Frontier League history in capturing its third consecutive title.
Washington started off hot, grabbing a 2-0 lead off a two-run blast from designated hitter Tyreque Reed. Right fielder Brandon McIlwain then increased the lead to 3-0 in the second inning when he crushed a solo homer over the left field fence.
The Capitales responded in the bottom of the second, leading off the inning with a solo home run from designated hitter Justin Gideon. After a pair of walks, third baseman Jake MacKenzie trimmed the deficit down to one with an RBI single into right. Catcher Ruben Castro then knotted things up at 3-3 with an RBI single up the middle.
The Wild Things stayed the course as the game entered into the third inning, retaking the lead with a solo blast from third baseman Tommy Caufield. Second baseman Jalen Miller then drilled a double down the left field line to bring in another run for Washington, making it 5-3.
First baseman Anthony Quirion kept Québec close, bringing home a run on a sacrifice fly in the home half of the third.
In the fourth, center fielder and league MVP Caleb McNeely broke out of his postseason slump by sending a home run over the wall in left-center field, pushing the lead back out to two.
Castro kept the Capitales in it, cutting the lead down to one in the sixth with a sacrifice fly. After a three-up three-down inning in the top of the seventh, the Capitales seized the momentum with a two-run bomb from Quirion to take a 7-6 lead. Two batters later, left fielder Tommy Seidl cranked a solo shot to center field to put Québec up by two.
The Capitales' bullpen came on for the final two innings and allowed just one hit to close the game out. Right-hander Nick Trabacchi, who stepped into the closer role in the East Division Series, earned the save after setting the Washington side down 1-2-3 in the ninth.
Québec and Washington will play the fourth game of the series on Saturday, September 14th at 7:05 PM EDT.
