Loesch Powers Bobcats, French Sets Record in 14-3 Win

Following a split against Kaskaskia last weekend at FNB Field, Coach Matt McCue and his Bobcats Baseball team are closing out the regular season with a three-game series against the Vincennes Trailblazers. The series opened Tuesday, April 28 at FNB Field, continues Thursday, April 30 in Fairfield, and wraps up Friday, May 1 at Vincennes.

Tuesday's matchup marked the first meeting of the season between the Bobcats and Trailblazers, and Frontier wasted no time setting the tone, rolling to a dominant 14-3 victory in the opener.

Chase Loesch powered the offense with a four-RBI performance on three hits. He delivered a three-run home run to center field in the sixth inning and added an RBI single earlier in the third to help pace Frontier's attack.

The Bobcats broke the game open in the sixth inning, erupting for eight runs. Mayes Gosser launched a two-run home run to center, Gael Salinas was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to force in a run, Jordan Carter followed with a two-run single, and Loesch capped the inning with his three-run blast.

Frontier got on the board in the third inning when Salinas doubled to left field and Loesch singled to center, each driving in two runs to give the Bobcats an early advantage.

Vincennes responded in the fourth inning with a two-run home run to right field by Dillon Warnick, but that would be all the offense the Trailblazers could generate.

Jonny Lee earned the win for Frontier with a strong outing on the mound. The right-hander allowed just three hits and three runs over seven innings while striking out nine and issuing no walks.

Carter Williams took the loss for Vincennes after allowing four runs (three earned) on three hits over two and two-thirds innings, with three strikeouts and three walks.

Frontier totaled nine hits in the contest and showed patience at the plate with nine walks. Carter, Garrett Schmidt, and Kasey Lowe each drew two walks. Defensively, the Bobcats were flawless, committing no errors, with Lowe leading the way with eight fielding chances.

Warnick led Vincennes offensively with two RBIs, while he, Carson Reed, and Mathew Everroad each recorded a hit for the Trailblazers, who also turned one double play.

Adding to the milestone night, Josh French etched his name into the Frontier record books by breaking the Bobcats' single-season stolen base record. French now has 43 stolen bases on the season, setting a new program standard.

With the win, Frontier improves to 34-17 overall. The Bobcats will host Vincennes again on Wednesday, April 30 at FNB Field, with first pitch set for 4 p.m. The game will also be streamed live on the Bobcat Nation YouTube channel.