Recent Bombers News
Dennis White knocks in Shane Saunders with winning run in the 9th
Englewood, CO. The Colorado Aces came into their game against the Spartans on Sunday licking their wounds from a 10-0 thrashing at the hands of the first place Mudcats a week earlier. That did not deter them on this Sunday as they took out the feisty Spartans in walk-off fashion 6-5 at Englewood High School.
The drama unfolded beginning in the 8th inning with the Aces trailing the Spartans 5-4 after Sparty had scored 2 runs in the 7th. Jason Leue lead off the 8th with a hard single down the third base line to get things started. He would promptly steal second base and leave the stage open for catcher Mitch Gross. Gross would battle his way through a 6 pitch at bat before grounding to short but moving Leue over to third. Manager Eric Meyer followed Gross' groundout with a bloop single to left center that scored Leue and tied the game. Dan Clemens, pinch hitting for Chris Schneider then singled but that was all the Aces could generate and the game went to the 9th inning tied at 5.
Leue had taken over for starter Dan Clemens in the 7th with one out and gotten the Aces out of that jam and entered the 9th needing to get 3 outs to give the Aces a chance for 9th inning heroics. Leue would not disappoint as he literally mowed down the Spartans in 1-2-3 fashion in the top of the 9th setting the stage for Shane Saunders and Dennis White to put an exclamation point on this game.
Saunders lead the inning off with a hard fought 7 pitch walk. He would then steal second on the first pitch to White putting him in scoring position. White would work the count to 2-0 before launching a stinging double into the right center field gap scoring Saunders from second and giving the Aces an exhilarating 6-5 win.
The win moved the Aces to 8-4 on the season and they held onto a tie for second place with the Shockers who beat the Blacksox 9-6 earlier in the day.
Dan Clemens started on the mound for the Aces and even though he admitted he did not have his best stuff, he kept the Aces in the game with guile and making pitches when he needed to. He tired a bit in the seventh and Clemens and Meyer decided to go to Leue to finish things off. Leue finished the game getting 5 outs while only facing 6 batters to get the win. Clemens struck out 7 and did not walk a batter in his 7 1/3 innings and Leue only gave up a single in his 1 2/3 innings of work.
Steve Jay carried the offensive load for the Aces before Meyer and White came through in the late innings by going 2-3 with 3 RBI to keep the game close. Saunders also had 2 hits on the day keeping his hot streak going out of the 2 hole. Zach Cook singled in the 5th, and Andy Philemon also had a single in the 7th for the Aces.
Defense carried the day as well with Craig Olson, Sherman Lodge, Chris Schneider, Tony Walsh, Keith Losey, Jeremy Sparks, Mitch Gross and Pat Poppen all making plays in the field in support of Clemens and Leue.
With 4 games to go the Aces are just 1 1/2 games behind the first place Mudcats with a game looming in two weeks between the two rivals. But first they have to take care of business with a game next Sunday against the Greensox at Bear Creek High School.
The season is shaping up to have an interesting and exciting finish to it before the playoffs begin on September 13th.
Win Second in a Row After 3 Game Losing Streak
Commerce City CO; The Colorado Aces faced off against the Buffalos on Sunday and garnered their second straight win with a 7-1 triumph at Prairie View High School.
The Aces have now righted the ship after losing three in a row in June to fall to 5-3. They now stand 7-3 and firmly entrenched in 2nd place in the NABA 35W League standings.
The tone was set for the Aces by starting pitcher Dan Clemens who has been terrific on the mound all season. Clemens came out and did not give the Buffalos anything they could get good wood on in the game. He would pitch a complete game 9 hitter with the only run coming in the 4th inning when the Buffalos finally strung together 3 hits in a row. Otherwise Clemens was at his best on this day. He struck out 6 and didn't walk a batter in the game and benefitted from some pretty good defense behind him. Catcher Mitch Gross called a great game from behind the plate and the Aces infield and outfield made plays when they needed to.
The bats were a little slow to get going but coming into the 6th inning tied at 1-1, the Aces started getting into the hitting groove. Kyle Paulson led the inning off with his second walk of the game, promptly stole second base and then Shane Saunders followed with a walk of his own. Andy Philemon would knock in Paulson with a single, Dennis White followed with a single that plated Saunders and Keith Losey would follow a Clemens Fielder's Choice with a single of his own that scored Philemon. This uprising would make the score 4-1, Aces and with the way Clemens was dealing, the game was essentially out of reach.
The Aces would tack on another 3 runs in the 7th as Chris Schneider and Sherman Lodge would lead off the inning with singles. After Pat Poppen made an out, Paulson would draw his third walk on the day to load the bases. Saunders would follow with an RBI groundout, Philemon would then stay hot by driving in 2 runs with a single to close out the scoring.
One other highlight on the day was Pat Poppen smashing a double to the left center field gap, his first double of his Aces career. Another was Lodge's 3 for 3 day, Schneider getting 2 hits on the day and Clemens getting hits from both the left and right sides of the plate.
It was a really good win for the Aces as, had they lost to the Buffalos, they would have fallen into a tie with the Buffalos in the standings and have an uphill climb to get one of the first two seeds for the upcoming playoffs.
Next up for the Aces is a 9:00 game at North High School this Saturday against the Mudcats. This is the make-up game from the rain-out on June 7th. This is a huge game for the Aces as they are chasing the Mudcats for first place in the league. The Mudcats come into the contest at 8-1 just a game and a half ahead of the Aces.
Aces Bring 5-0 Record into Game
Englewood, CO The Colorado Aces bring their sparkling 5-0 record into their next game on Sunday, June 21st against Cricket Wireless at Brent Mayne Field in Englewood.
Following up on their dominating 9-3 win over the Blacksox last Sunday, the Aces will clash with Cricket Wireless who comes into the game at 2-3 and is much improved from last year. Steve Jay will get the ball on the mound for the Aces for his first start of the season. The team will be a little shorthanded this week due to the Father's Day Holiday and several players being out for various reasons.
The Aces come into this game having outscored their opponents by a remarkable 49-13 score this season. The Aces pitching has been more than stellar, posting a 1.57 ERA through five games and only allowing a total of 2.60 runs per game thus far. The pitching has been led by starter Dan Clemens and relievers Jay, Jason Leue and Keith Losey, who will all get starts along the way this season.
With the disjointedness of the early season due to Bye's, Holidays and rain-outs, the Aces bats have been somewhat inconsistent but they have gotten the big hits when they have needed them. They hope to crank up the bats this weekend against Cricket and put up some crooked numbers on their 35W Division foe.
The weather looks like it will be perfect for the 12:30 start which is something of a coup in this season of moisture. The Aces will be ready to go on Sunday and try and push their record to 6-0 and hold onto first place in their Division.
Aces win 5th in a Row; Beat Blacksox 9-3
- By Eric M. Meyer 06/14/2015, 5:15pm MDT
Aces Return to Field, Beat Spartans 7-2
- By Eric M. Meyer 05/18/2015, 9:15pm MDT
Aces Hope to Play this Weekend
- By Eric M. Meyer 05/15/2015, 3:00pm MDT
Aces Have Second Game in a Row Postponed
- By Eric M. Meyer 04/27/2015, 12:30pm MDT
Aces Beat Shockers 16-6 on Opening Day
- By Eric M. Meyer 04/22/2015, 10:00am MDT