Province slams the door as Mesa edges Scottsdale

11/10 Cup of Coffee: It was a close one in the desert Monday, but timely hitting and a stellar ensemble pitching performance helped Mesa edge Scottsdale by a 3-2 score.

The Scorpions got off to a fast start, scoring in the first when Brandon Crawford (SFG) doubled with one out and scored two batters later on an RBI groundout by fellow Giants prospect Thomas Neal. Hector Gomez (COL) added to the lead in the third when he homered against Marco Albano (LAA), who had just entered the game for starter Tim Kiely (LAA), to lead off the inning.

With the score still 2-0 in favor of Scottsdale in the bottom of the fifth, Mesa started its comeback. After a lead-off single by David Cooper (TOR) and a fielders-choice groundout by Ryan Kalish, Steve Singleton (MIN) tied the game with a two-run home run to right, scoring Kalish. The Solar Sox would take the lead an inning later thanks in large part to the speed of Starlin Castro (CHC), who led off the inning with a single, stole second, advanced to third on a fly out by Rene Tosoni (MIN), and scored on a sacrifice fly by Chris Parmelee (MIN) to make the score 3-2.

The Mesa bullpen would handle things from there, shutting out Scottsdale over the final 7.0 innings following the Gomez home run. After Albano departed at the start of the fifth inning, Florida prospects Jay Voss and Jay Buente each tossed 2.0 scoreless frames. Chris Province then closed the game out in the ninth, allowing only 1 hit to earn his second save of the AFL season.

Kalish, who patrolled center field for Mesa in this game, went 0 for 3 with 2 strikeouts, but did gun down Buster Posey (SFG) at second base to turn a fly out to center into a double play. Jose Iglesias also saw action in this one, going 0 for 3. Mesa returns to action this afternoon at 2:35 EST when the team squares off against Surprise.

Player of the Night: Chris Province, who preserved a one-run lead with a scoreless inning to earn his second AFL save.

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