The Alaska Goldpanners of Fairbanks held off the Peninsula Oilers for a 7-6 Alaska Baseball League victory Wednesday at Growden Memorial Park in Fairbanks.
The loss tightens up the American League standings. The Oilers still lead with a 6-7 record, but the Bucs (5-8) and the Panners (4-7) are now just a game back.
The game was the fifth of six scheduled for the Oilers in Fairbanks, and the Oilers are now 2-3 in those contests.
The Oilers play at 7 p.m. tonight in Fairbanks before returning home for a 7 p.m. game Saturday against the Chugiak Chinooks.
The Goldpanners took control of Wednesday’s game by scoring five runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to take a 7-2 lead.
Cameron Stanton had gotten the start for the Oilers and went five innings while giving up two earned runs on two hits.
Shane Ennis got in trouble to start the seventh and ended up giving up three runs in 1 1-3 innings.
Jordan Kron came on in the seventh but couldn’t squelch the fire, giving up two runs — one earned — on a hit in two-thirds of an inning.
But the Oilers, who got their first two runs on an inside-the-park home run by Brian Ruhm that also scored Ted Boeke, battled back in the eighth and ninth.
In the eighth, Boeke hit his second home run in as many days to cut the gap to 7-3.
In the ninth, James Fowlkes doubled with one out to score Billy Wilson, then Jordan Washam hit a sac fly to score Lukas Hermanson and put Fowlkes at third.
Alex Seifert then doubled to score Fowlkes and cut the score to 7-6.
With the tying run on second, the Panners inserted AJ Franks for Steve Simmons on the hill.
Bennett Oliver worked the count to 3-2 and then cracked a line drive to center field, but the left fielder was there for the out.
Fowlkes had three hits for the Oilers’ 11-hit attack, while Seifert and Boeke each added two.
The Goldpanners had five hits, with Austin Bush collecting three of them.
Wednesday
Goldpanners 7, Oilers 6
Oilers AB R H BI Panners AB R H BI
Wshm ss 4 0 1 1 Glch cf 4 1 1 3
Sfrt lf 5 0 2 1 Csto lf 2 0 0 1
Olvr 1b 5 0 1 0 Lees c 3 0 1 0
Bke 3b 3 2 2 1 Bnm rf 4 0 0 0
Rhm dh 3 1 1 2 Nlsn ss 2 2 0 0
Glsy 2b 4 0 0 0 Bush 1b 4 2 3 2
Wlsn rf 4 1 1 0 Jns 3b 4 0 0 0
Hmsn c 3 1 0 0 Rbts dh 1 0 0 0
Flks cf 4 1 3 1 Vrln dh 1 1 0 0
—- — — — — Rlds 2b 3 1 0 1
Totals 35 6 11 6 Totals 28 7 5 7
Peninsula 000 200 013 —6
Fairbanks 000 020 50X —7
2B — Seifert, Fowlkes. 3B — Gelalich. HR — Boeke, Ruhm, Bush. SF — Washam, Cassolato. SB — Washam, Lees. CS — Seifert. E — Washam. LOB — Oilers 6, Golpanners 4. DP — Oilers 1.
IP H R ER BB SO
Oilers
Stanton 5 2 2 2 2 2
Ennis, L 1 1-3 1 3 3 2 1
Kron 2-3 1 2 1 1 0
Michel 1 1 0 0 0 1
Goldpanners
Hingst, W 7 7 2 2 2 7
Pendergast 1 1 1 1 0 2
Simmons 2-3 3 3 3 1 0
Franks, S 1-3 0 0 0 0 0
WP — Ennis. HBP — by Stanton (Nielson).
Alaska Baseball League
Standings
W L Pct. GB Overall
American League
Oilers 6 7 .462 — 9-10
Bucs 5 8 .385 1 8-11
Panners 4 7 .375 1 8-10
National League
Miners 13 4 .765 — 15-4
Chinooks 9 9 .500 4 1-2 10-11
Pilots 7 9 .438 5 1-2 9-11
Wednesday, July 1
Panners 7, Oilers 6
Bucs 1, Pilots 0, 12 inn., nonleague
Miners 5, Chinooks 1
Thursday, July 2
Oilers at Panners, 7 p.m.
Miners at Bucs, 7 p.m.
