(Trenton, NJ) – The second half of the season has been a constant uphill battle for the Thunder, who lost Friday night’s opener to the West Virginia Black Bears 9-1 at Trenton Thunder Ballpark. Black Bears starter **Shandon Herrera **carried a no-hitter into the sixth inning, overshadowing a strong five-inning start from **Jose Ledesma **in his finest performance of the season. With the loss, the Thunder are now 4-12 since the All-Star break and are just 2-5 in the head-to-head matchups against the first half champions.
With two outs in the third, **Turner Hill **picked up his second hit with a two out double and scored the game’s first run on a single from Maddux Houghton. On the play, the ball rolled through Thunder center fielder **Sam Freedman **for a two base error, allowing Houghton to score the second run of the inning on a wild pitch.
In the sixth, the Black Bears went ahead 5-0 on a run-scoring single from **Ruben Fontes **and a two-RBI double from Jovante Dorris. In the home half, **Christian Merriweather **broke up Herrera’s (1-0) no-hit bid with a two-out bunt single. The Black Bears soon made it 6-0 in the seventh courtesy of a **Logan Mathieu **fielder’s choice groundout.
With one out in the bottom of the seventh, **Paul Coumoulos **and **Shemar Page **reached on back-to-back singles. Two batters later, **Sam Freedman **singled home a run to get the Thunder on the board and end the shutout. After **Connor VanCleave **worked an inning-and-a-third of scoreless relief, the Black Bears scored three more runs in the top of the ninth with runs batted in from **Jack Elliott **and Fontes.
The series continues on Saturday, August 13 at 6:30 PM when your Thunder host the second annual Addiction Awareness Night in partnership with City of Angels, the New Jersey Division of the DEA, and Horizon BCBSNJ. The Thunder will wear special jerseys that will be donated to the City of Angels Baseball Team after the game. For full ticket pricing and information for the rest of the 2022 season, partnership/sponsorship opportunities, and information about special events at Trenton Thunder Ballpark, please visit trentonthunder.com or call the Thunder Box Office at (609) 394-3300, opt 4.
New Jersey's Baseball Team | Founding Member of the MLB Draft League
The Trenton Thunder have drawn over 10 million fans over 28 years and have won the three major awards that Minor League Baseball teams can win; the Johnson Trophy for the “Nation's Best Franchise”, the Larry MacPhail Trophy for Outstanding Club Promotion, and the Bob Frietas Award for Long-Term Success, given by Baseball America. The team has given back over $7.5 million worth of goods, services, and monetary donations through Trenton Thunder Charities, under the Grand Slam We Care Foundation umbrella. The Thunder can be found online at trentonthunder.com, facebook.com/trentonthunder, twitter.com/trentonthunder, and on youtube.com/AATrentonThunder.
