HOUGHTON, NY—The Houghton Highlanders picked up their second conference series win of the season, but could not complete the sweep, as they defeated the Keuka Wolves in Saturday afternoon's opener, 9-8, before falling in the finale, 5-12.
 
GAME VITALS                           
Game #1 Score: Houghton – 9 | Keuka – 8
Game #2 Score: Houghton – 5 | Keuka – 12
Records: Keuka: 10-15 (4-10 Empire 8) | Houghton: 13-12 (5-8 Empire 8)
Venue: Kerr-Pegula Athletic Complex, Houghton, NY | Attendance:
 
Game #1:
A four-run top of the second gave Houghton a 5-2 lead, but the Wolves quickly rallied to tie the score, 5-5 with three runs in the bottom half of the inning.
 
The Highlanders plated two more in the third, and another in the fourth to take an 8-5 lead, but Keuka again rallied, scoring two in the bottom of the fourth and eventually tying the game again, 8-8, in the bottom of the fifth.
 
In the sixth, both sides went down in order.
 
Vincent Lucyszyn drew a hit-by-pitch to lead off the top of the seventh and quickly stole second base.  Lucyszyn moved to third on wild pitch and scored the go-ahead run on a passed ball.
 
Things got a little hairy for the Highlanders in the bottom of the seventh.  Ian Ruhmel drew a one-out walk and stole second base.  With a 1-2 count on the batter, Ruhmel took off for third.  The batter swung and missed at a ball in the dirt, but Houghton's catcher threw to third, trying to catch Ruhmel stealing, who upended the Highlanders' third baseman, landing on top of Ruhmel as the ball kicked into shallow left field. 
 
Ultimately, the Wolves ended up with runners at the corners with one out.  But Nate Tyler quickly induced infield pop-ups on the next two batters to end the game.
 
Tyler picked up his second win of the year, and the Highlanders clinched the series.
 
Game #2:
The Wolves scored all the runs they would need in the first four frames, scoring pairs of runs in the first, third and fourth, eventually winning, 12-5.
 
Houghton cut the Keuka lead to 4-3 in the top of the fourth, after Qingyang Feng and Vincent Lucyszyn hit back-to-back singles to plate three runs.  Keuka quickly answered with two runs in the bottom of the inning, then added three more in the bottom of the sixth to take a commanding, 9-3 lead.
 
The Highlanders never truly threatened after that point.
 
KEY STATS:
>> The Highlanders left 11 runners on base in the first game, and 10 in the second.  Keuka stranded nine and eight, respectively.
 
>> Keuka did not make a single defensive error in either game.  Houghton made six.
 
>> Feng went 5-for-8 on the day with a triple, stolen base, and four RBI. 
 
>> Kanta Ueno finished 3-for-7, extending his hitting streak to six games.  He has had a base hit in 21 of the Highlanders' 25 games this season, and his currently ranks second in the Empire 8 with a .469 batting average.

COACH'S CORNER:
"On the positive side, we won the series, and that's definitely a good thing.  We pulled out a tough win in the first game, and there were definitely some positives to take away from that game.
 
"On the negative side, our pitching and defense were not what they needed to be today.  Our pitchers limited free bases, which was good, but they did not hold runners very well, and our command should have been better.  Our defense made a number of costly mistakes.  We pulled out the first one, but it caught up to us in the second.
 
"Offensively, there were a lot of positives—we had 18 hits, 15 walks and three hit-by-pitches on the day, and we ran the bases well.  Unfortunately, we also struck out 13 times in the second game, often with runners in scoring position.  We left too many men on base.
 
"This upcoming week is going to be extremely challenging, with Brockport in the midweek and Utica on the weekend.  But it's also Palm Sunday-to-Easter week, and we have a lot of reasons to be joyful.  As I reminded our players in the locker room, our allegiance dictates that we have hope and joy always, win or lose, good days and bad.  We play, and live, for a greater purpose." – Coach Brian Reitnour
 
UP NEXT:
The Highlanders travel to Brockport on Tuesday for a doubleheader with the Golden Eagles at 1:00 p.m.