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Churchill nearly perfect in complete-game triumph

THUNDER BAY --Cameron Churchill knows how to make an entrance. The Thunder Bay Border Cats right-hander took a perfect game into the seventh inning Sunday night in his second start, helping his team snap an 0-14 start to the season at Tbaytel Park.
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Border Cats outfielder Joe Gellenbeck makes contact in Game 1 on Sunday afternoon at Tbaytel Park. The Cats split a doubleheader against Mankato. (Leith Dunick, tbnewswatch.com)

THUNDER BAY --Cameron Churchill knows how to make an entrance.

The Thunder Bay Border Cats right-hander took a perfect game into the seventh inning Sunday night in his second start, helping his team snap an 0-14 start to the season at Tbaytel Park.

Jordan Washam was the lone batter to reach base for the visiting Mankato Moon Dogs, who had to settle for a doubleheader split, taking the opener 8-4 in 10 innings earlier in the afternoon.

Washam singled with one out in the seventh, the final inning of play in a game scheduled for seven innings after torrential downpours forced the suspension of Saturday’s contest between the two teams.

Churchill tossed a much-needed complete game, striking out nine as the Cats went on to win 3-0, ending an eight-game losing streak.
It was just their second win in 25 tries in 2016.

“I knew I was pitching pretty well,” said Churchill, freshman at Florida’s Nova Southeastern University.

“I was trying not to think about it at all, but obviously it was in the back of my mind. “I was just trying to get ahead and let my defence work, as I have been doing all year.”

The strong pitching performance was a breath of fresh air for the Border Cats, whose staff has the worst earned run average in the league at 7.10. Only one other team is over 6.00, the Rochester Honkers at 6.14.

Churchill said he’s often guilty of thinking too much, but on Sunday, slowed his mind down and focused on the task at hand.
“I knew they could put up runs for me, so I just wanted to limit the big inning,” he said.

When he took to the mound in the first, the Jacksonville, N.C. native had no idea he’d be two-outs from a perfect game.

“In the beginning of the game it was raining a lot and after the first inning we had a bit of a rain delay,” Churchill said. “I thought (manager) Dan (Benedetti) was going to pull me. I’m glad he didn’t, though.

Benedetti said the complete-game masterpiece is hopefully a sign of things to come for his beleaguered pitching staff.

“Just look out. We’ve got some more guys coming, two more arms coming,” Benedetti said. “Some guys have left us, it’s kind of what the organization does, but at the end of the day you can tell what this kid did tonight where we’re going and what direction we’re going to be in.”

Anthony Borcato gave the Border Cats the lead in the first, a two-run double scoring Andy Weber and Joe Gellenbeck.

An RBI groundout by Bobby Honeyman in the third upped Thunder Bay’s lead to 3-0.

It was Honeyman who tried to play hero in the opener, singling home  the tying run in the ninth to send the game to extra innings knotted 4-4.

But the Moon Dogs, who took a 4-0 lead on Chase Hamilton’s first-inning grand slam on Saturday, didn’t let their bats stay silent for long in the 10th.

Back-to-back singles off Border Cats reliever Joey Burris and an error by shortstop Andy Fregia gave Mankato a 5-4 lead.

Gavin Wehby singled home another run off Burris before he was pulled, Seth Gill taking over on the mound for Thunder Bay.

Gill delivered a pair of wild pitches to score two more.

Burris was tagged with the loss to fall to 1-2.

Brick Paskiewicz earned the win, despite blowing the save opportunity in the ninth.

He retired the Cats in order in the 10th, inducing three straight groundouts to end the game.

The Border Cats (2-23) travel to Rochester to take on the Honkers on Monday night. Rochester (5-20) has lost 10 straight. 

Correction: An earlier version of this story said Cameron Churchill was making his debut. In fact, it was his second start. 



Leith Dunick

About the Author: Leith Dunick

A proud Nova Scotian who has called Thunder Bay home since 2002, Leith is Dougall Media's director of news, but still likes to tell your stories too. Wants his Expos back and to see Neil Young at least one more time. Twitter: @LeithDunick
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