MARSHALL - Cody Curry struck out six batters over nine innings for the Marshall A's Friday night. Behind Curry's dominating performance on the mound, Marshall defeated the Tracy Express 8-1 at Legion Field in Marshall.
Curry did not allow a hit until the fourth inning in his first start in over a year. With the A's missing five players for a weekend that features four games for Marshall, it was crucial that Curry have a strong outing.
"Even if he gave up a couple more runs, we were going to ride with him," A's manager Sean Culhane said, "because you've got to have arms for the weekend. To get that out of him is huge because now we have the option outside of him for the rest of the weekend."
Marshall struck for three runs in the first inning off of Express starter Jesse Drager. The A's added another run in the second and two more in the sixth off of Drager, who allowed six runs on 10 hits. He was credited with the loss for the Express.
"We had to make a last-minute change last night about what we were going to do with our approach," Tracy manager Aaron Ziemer said. "We thought, traditionally, they sometimes struggle when guys don't throw as hard. We thought Jesse would be a good counter."
Unfortunately for the Express, the A's bats were in tune all night. Marshall had 13 hits in the game, three of which were for extra bases. The A's, who struggled from the plate early in the summer, have begun to find their swing.
"I think we are taking a better approach at the plate," Culhane said. "I didn't think that the first games we played in the beginning of the summer. We had a lot of at-bats where guys were chasing balls that we didn't need to.
"My biggest thing to the guys was lets go deep into the count. Get good at-bats."
Leading Marshall Friday night from the plate was Zach Olson, who went 3-for-3 with two triples, an RBI, and a run scored. Curry also hit the ball well, going 3-for-4 with two RBIs and a run. Jordon Kontz scored two runs for the A's, and Andrew Kinney had a double and an RBI.
Tracy, which mustered only five hits on the night, got its lone run in the eighth inning when pinch-hitter Phil Madsen scored on an Andrew Suby single.
"We just haven't been able to get the timely hit," Ziemer said. "It's kinda been our M.O. this year."
Next up for the Express (6-12 overall) is an important matchup Sunday with Gopher League foe Adrian. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m. in Tracy.
The A's are back on the field for a doubleheader today against the St. Cloud Snappers. The first game is scheduled to start at 2 p.m. at Legion Field. Marshall then heads to Hadley on Sunday for a pair of games, one versus Jackson at 3 p.m. and the other a 5 p.m. contest against the Buttermakers.
Tracy000 000 0101 5 0
Marshall310 002 02X8 13 1
T-Jesse Drager, Calvin Kosminskas (7). M-Cody Curry. WP-Curry. LP-Drager. 3B: M-Zach Olson (2). 2B: M-Andrew Kinney.