The Hill City Howlers (16-28) dropped a low-scoring affair to the Myrtle Beach Pelicans (16-28) by a 3-1 margin Wednesday.
Hill City was stopped dead in its tracks after scoring nine runs on Tuesday. The Howlers squeezed out two hits in the game while only walking twice.
The lack of production at the plate came in a game where pitching stood out, as the staff only let up one earned run and limited the Pelicans to two free passes.
The bullpen was especially strong, as the three arms combined for four innings of scoreless relief and five strikeouts.
All the scoring happened early, with the Pelicans jumping in early with a run in each of the first two innings.
In the first, center fielder Ethan Conrad drove in the lead run on a double to put Myrtle Beach up 1-0.
First baseman Ivan Cespedes added another in the second when he dropped a single into center field to get right fielder Eli Lovich home.
The Howlers cut the lead to one in the third when first baseman Pedro Dalmagro drove in shortstop Ben Cleary on an RBI groundout.
Pelicans third baseman Corey Nunez quickly extended the Howlers’ deficit back to two when he drove in a run on a groundout in the fourth.
All would go quiet after that frame with each bullpen going out for out following three and four-inning starts from each arm.
Righty Aaron Savary opened things up with two scoreless innings of relief after Will Hynes got knocked out of the game. Newcomer Carson Lane dazzled after Savary, striking out the side in his lone inning.
Right-hander Angel Perez tossed a scoreless eighth to give Hill City a chance down only two runs in the ninth but the Howlers went quietly, going down 1-2-3 for the loss.
The Howlers move on to game three of the first half of a two-week road trip tomorrow in Myrtle Beach. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 EST and the stream can be found on Bally Live.