Ironbirds 7
Cyclones 6 (10 inns)
July 20 at Aberdeen
The Clones lost a heartbreaker, coming back from 6–2 deficit to tie the game in the top of the ninth only to lose it in the 10th.
Reliever Casey Hauptman took the loss with a poor inning in which he gave up a single, a walk and the game-winning single in rapid succession.
It erased a furious Cyclone comeback. After falling behind 5–0, the Cyclones scored two in the fourth. Richard Lucas led off the frame by reaching on an error before Brian Harrison singled and Travis Taijeron hit a one-RBI double (two would have scored, but it was a ground-rule double. Amauris Valdez added a sacrifice fly.
The Ironbirds got one of those runs back to take a 6–2 lead, but the Clones answered back.
In the sixth, the Cyclones scored two on Brown’s dinger, his fifth of the season.
In the eighth, the Clones added another run on Valdez’s two-out RBI single.
And in the ninth, down to their last at-bat, the Cyclones tied the game as the Ironbirds collapsed. Ismael Tijerina singled, then moved to second on a passed ball and to third on a wild pitch. Lucas then singled him home.
But Hauptman’s meltdown ruined the game for everyone.
The Cyclones return home vs. the Aberdeen Ironbirds at MCU Park [1904 Surf Ave. at W. 17th Street in Coney Island, (718) 449-8497] on July 21 at 7 pm. For info, visit www.brooklyncyclones.com.
