THUNDER BAY – A six-run first inning stood up, though barely, as the Thunder Bay Border Cats won for the fourth straight outing.
The Cats (17-16) jumped all over Duluth Huskies starter Simon Murray, who lasted but a single inning, allowing six runs – only two of them earned, on four hits and a couple of walks, the Cats aided by a pair of errors and three wild pitches on their scoring spree.
The Huskies (22-12), who have now lost five straight at Port Arthur Stadium this season, battled back with two in the fifth and two more in the seventh to close the gap to a single run, but between reliever Porter Jorgenson and closer Tyler Talbert, the hometown team was able to hold their opponent at bay in the eighth and ninth.
“It’s good to come up in a big spot for these guys and hold it for the big hitters. And Talbert did an incredible job in the ninth. It was a pleasure to set it up for him,” said Jorgenson, the son of former Border Cats franchise owner Brad Jorgenson, filling in as a temporary pitcher over the course of the final week of the regular season.
Jorgenson pitched three solid innings in relief of Thunder Bay starter Rylan Newman, allowing two runs to the playoff bound Huskies on four hits and a pair of walks, getting Tyler Palmer and Rowan Kelly out with a runner on third to end Duluth’s eighth-inning threat.
It’s pretty cool to play for a team that’s meant so much to his family. Jorgenson was a bat boy growing up and his brother Bryce played for the team for three seasons too.
“It’s huge. I was back here in 2023 and I was fortunate enough to be with them this year as well. Obviously growing up with them as a kid, coming out to games, and then being here, it’s very surreal.”
Jorgenson said seeing the Border Cats bat around in the first inning to jump in front 6-1 feels good from one end of the pitching staff to the other.
Pitchers love runs on the board, he said.
“As a pitcher, you can go out there and pitch with a lot of confidence when you see innings like that,” Jorgenson said.
The first inning looked like it might be routine for Murray, when leadoff hitter Kaiden Ashton hit a bouncer to the mound. Murray fielded it cleanly, but airmailed a toss into rightfield, landing Ashton on second. With two on and none out, Jeremy Sheffield followed with a run-scoring single. A double steal attempt led to another error, this one charged to Duluth catcher Cal Elvis, his throw missing the mark, scoring Dylan Snead.
Corey Morro stepped in a singled in another run and then, after a two-out Joey Ruiz Walk, Duncan Key smacked a two-run single to right.
Newman, who surrendered three runs on five hits, earned the win, but found trouble in the fifth. Rowan Kelly doubled in a run and Ethan Surowiec, a leading candidate for Northwoods League MVP, with 17 home runs and 68 RBI on the season, collected his second RBI of the night, singling to score Kelly, making it a 6-3 contest.
Jorgenson allowed the first three batters of the seventh to reach, but was able to limit the damage to a pair of runs. Kelly scampered home on a groundball by Murray, who later score on an Ethan Cole single to centre.
But with Elvish at the dish, George McIntyre got caught on the back-end of a double steal, tagged out by catcher Key to put an end to the inning.
Talbert came on and struck out the side in the ninth to earn the save.
The Cats and Huskies meet again on Thursday night, Thunder Bay’s home finale. Game time is 7:05 p.m., with fireworks to follow.
