'Hawks find clutch hits hard to come by

By BRETT PAPE
Valley Press Staff Writer

On a Fourth of July night that had fireworks going off before, during, and after the game, the JetHawks failed to score six or more runs for the first time in eight games, losing 4-3 Sunday to San Bernardino at The Ranch in front of 7,330 fans.

While the JetHawks struggled to score runs, they did manage to collect 12 hits against three Stampede pitchers. The loss drops Lancaster to 4-7 in the second half and 27-54 overall.

"We just didn't put things together tonight," Lancaster manager Darrin Garner said. "You can't expect a team to go out and score six runs every night."

The evening started off good offensively for Lancaster, as the JetHawks scored a run in the top of the first inning.

Leadoff batter Harvey Hargrove opened the game with a single and later scored on a Greg Connors RBI groundout to second.

San Bernardino answered in the bottom of the first, scoring two runs with help from Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Mark Grudzielanek. Grudzielanek was making his third consecutive start for the Stampede while rehabbing from a broken bone in his right hand.

Grudzielanek singled to right and moved to third on second baseman Eric Riggs' double. Karl Chatman scored Grudzielanek on a ground out to short, and Riggs later came home on a single by Robb Gorr, giving the Stampede a 2-1 lead.

After both teams failed to score in the second and third innings, the Stampede saw their lead grow to 3-1 when Riggs connected on a Neil Longo fastball for a leadoff homer.

The Stampede loaded the bases with two outs, only to have Longo strike out Brett Illig to end the threat.

San Bernardino (8-3, 49-32) scored its final run in the fourth when Grudzielanek raced in from third on a Chin-Feng Chen sacrifice fly to right. Grudzielanek had reached base on a single with one out.

Despite having one of his better outings, Longo took the loss to drop his record to 3-3. He gave up 12 hits in six innings with a walk and four strikeouts.

"He did a nice job," Garner said. "He threw the ball well and was able to get out of a few jams. I wanted to keep him out there, but I had to get some other guys some work."

The JetHawks looked as if they were going to rally, scoring a run in the sixth when Jason Regan came home on a wild pitch by Adrian Burnside. Regan singled with two outs and moved to third on a Pee Wee Lopez single.

Joel Ramirez followed Lopez's hit with one of his own to give the JetHawks runners on first and second with one run already in. However, Burnside got Matt Sachse out on a pop-up in foul territory that Illig caught for the final out.

In the eighth, Regan hit a shot off Cedric Hebert that had the looks of what would have been his 46th homer as a JetHawk and fifth long ball in five games. However, the shot careened off the top of the right-field fence, and Regan settled for a double.

Regan scored Lancaster's final run when Lopez singled to center. The Lancaster third baseman finished 2-for-4 with two runs scored.

San Bernardino's Bill Everly retired the JetHawks in order in the top of the ninth to pick up his Cal League-leading 21st save.