The Portage Padres are closing in on their second consecutive Santa Clara Baseball League championship after a strong 9-3 win over Plumas in Game 2 Tuesday night.
Pitcher Rory Manns kept the Pirates at bay, going deep into the seventh inning, before Riley Borody came on to close out the final two outs. On offence, Tanner Jago and Tanner Boyle went back-to-back with home runs in the sixth inning to put the game out of reach.
Portage now leads the best-of-five final series 2-0 and can clinch the title Wednesday night when Game 3 gets underway at Republic of Manitobah Park in Portage at 6:30 p.m.
Last year’s series between these two rivals went all the way to Game 5, where the Padres edged Plumas for the crown. This year’s rematch has so far been dominated by Portage, who started the final with a 13-5 victory in Game 1 behind a complete game from Chad Melnic.
If necessary, Game 4 will be played in Plumas on August 14 at 6:30 p.m., with a decisive Game 5 scheduled for August 15 back in Portage at 6:30 p.m.
The Padres are focused on tonight’s opportunity to claim back-to-back SCBL titles and will be looking to keep the momentum rolling with a strong crowd behind them.
- with files from Jared Thiessen
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