BIRDS MISS SWEEP IN 9-6 LOSS

St. Paul, MN – The Sioux Falls Canaries (12-5) lost the series finale with the St. Paul Saints (9-8) by a score of 9-6 on Sunday night at Midway Stadium.

St. Paul got on the board in the bottom of the first inning. The Saints loaded the bases on a single by Adam Olow and walks to Marcel Longmire and Brian Sprout. Brent Krause followed with an infield single to score Olow and the Saints took a 1-0 lead before Canaries starter Jeff Landing stranded the bases loaded by striking out Josue Lopez.

The Canaries tied the game in the top of the second inning. Wil Quintana hit his second triple of the series and scored on a sacrifice fly by Will Smith to even the score, 1-1.

In the bottom of the second, St. Paul retook the lead. Billy Cox doubled and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Ryan Priddy. Cox came in to score on a wild pitch to give the Saints a 2-1 advantage.

The Saints added three in the bottom of the third inning. Olow led off with a single and Longmire followed with a walk. Sprout laid down a bunt to sacrifice the runners to second and third. A single by Krause scored Olow for a 3-1 lead, and after Krause stole second base Cox singled to score Longmire and Krause and give the Saints a four-run lead, 5-1.

The Birds got one back in the top of the fourth inning. Ben Van Iderstine singled and scored on a double by Tim Marks. After four innings, the Canaries trailed 5-2.

St. Paul added three more runs in the fifth. Longmire led the inning off with a single. A sacrifice bunt and a stolen base later, Longmire was on third base for Krause who singled him home for a 6-2 lead. Later in the inning Lopez singled to score Krause and Priddy drove in Lopez with a single for an 8-2 lead.

The Saints added one more in the sixth. Olow singled to get on base and Krause drove him home with his fourth RBI single of the night for a 9-2 Saints lead.

The Birds mounted a comeback in the seventh. Tim Marks led off with a double and David Keesee followed with a walk. A wild pitch advanced the runners to second and third. James Shanks singled to score Marks. With runners on the corners, Angelo Fermin drew a walk. On ball four, Shanks was attempting to steal second. Saints catcher Billy Cox threw the ball away at second. The error allowed Keesee to score. Abner Arroyo followed with an RBI single to score Shanks. After the Canaries loaded the bases on a walk by Wil Quintana, Ben Van Iderstine brought in Fermin on a sacrifice fly. The Canaries got four runs on three hits in the inning to pull within three runs, 9-6. The Birds failed to score in the final two innings and lost 9-6.

Jeff Landing (3-1) allowed eight runs on 10 hits and suffered his first loss of the season. Jake Postlewait (3-1) got the win for St. Paul and Tony Pierce picked up his first save of the season.

The Canaries return home on Tuesday night to begin a three-game series with the St. Joe Blacksnakes. Tuesday's promotion will be "Viva Las Vegas" presented by Allegiant Air, where the Canaries will be giving away free flights to Las Vegas.
*Courtesy: Sioux Falls Canaries