The Bisons rebounded after a game one defeat to top the Durham Bulls, 2-1, in the second game of a doubleheader on Wednesday night at Sahlen Field. Steward Berroa and Christian Bethancourt drove home runs as Buffalo evened their home record to 2-2 on the season.
Five singles were all a quartet of Bisons pitchers allowed in game two. Andrew Bash, Bobby Milacki, Josh Walker and Braydon Fisher combined to strike out nine and work around five walks. Milacki earned the victory for his 2.2 innings of work Walker relieved him in the fifth and struck out three of the four batters he faced.
The Bulls did push across an unearned run in the top of the seventh inning on two singles and a passed ball. Fisher struck out Tanner Murray to end the game and pick up his first save of the season.
The Bisons opened the game two scoring in the fourth inning with Berroa getting the biggest hit of the game. After Will Robertson got aboard with a one out single and Riley Tirotta walked, Berroa lined a double to right field to plate the game’s first run. Tirotta made it 2-0 when he alertly scored on Bethancourt’s fly ball that normally would’ve been too shallow to be a sacrifice fly, but Tirotta noticed Bulls centerfielder Chandler Simpson had to reach down to his shoe tops to make the catch. By the time Simpson was able to set himself to make a throw, Tirotta was already well down the line and on his way to make it 2-0.
Buffalo had just four hits in game two, with Jonathan Clase picking up two of the hits in a 2-3 night. He also had an impressive delayed steal of second base for his sixth stolen base of the season.
In the first game, the Bulls used a four-run second inning to secure a 7-1 victory. Jamie Westbrook brought home the first run of the day with a sacrifice fly and Simpson added two more with a two-run single in the same frame. Catcher Kenny Piper put the contest out of reach with a towering three-run home run just inside the left field foul pole in the top of the sixth inning.
Buffalo was held to just three hits in the game one loss with two of them coming in consecutive at-bats to give the Herd its lone tally. Addison Barger led off the bottom of the fourth inning with a loud double to right and Joey Loperfido followed with a sharp single past second base to bring him home.
That was the only bump in the night for Durham starter, Connor Seabold. The righty struck out six batters over five innings and walked just one Bison to earn his first win of the season.
Southpaw Jake Bloss suffered his second defeat of the season for Buffalo, allowing four runs (three earned) in 4.2 innings of work.
The Bisons continue their series against the Bulls on Thursday with a 6;05 p.m. first pitch from Sahlen Field.
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