Late Comeback Falls Short, Titans Drop Finale to Jackals

OFFICIAL FRONTIER LEAGUE BOX SCORE

Ottawa, ON - Playing their longest game in franchise history, the Ottawa Titans (44-43) saw a late comeback fall short, dropping the series finale 12-7 to the New Jersey Jackals (54-32) on Thursday.

Battling Mother Nature all night, walks were the story from starting pitchers Grant Larson (ND, 8-7) and Dylan Castaneda (ND, 6-4), who each tossed five frames, and walked a combined nine.

The Jackals pulled out to an early lead with multi-run frames in the second and third to go up 4-1 before the Titans chipped their way back. With the bases loaded in the third, Jackie Urbaez drew a walk to plate a run before a sac fly from Austin Davis made it a one-run contest.

With the bases juiced, Josh Rehwaldt's sacrifice fly in the fourth plated James Nelson to make it 5-3, knocking Larson out of the game. The southpaw allowed five runs (four earned) on eight hits, walking a career-high four, and striking out three.

Despite throwing a clean sixth in relief, Daulton Montagna allowed a pair of runs in the top of the seventh, headlined by a solo homer from Alex Toral to go up 7-3.

Following the stretch, the Titans rallied to tie the game by sending ten to the plate and scored four times on five hits. Joey Terdoslavich extended his hit streak to six games with a two-run blast to right before RBI singles from Austin Davis and Jamey Smart pulled the Titans level at seven.

In the eighth, the Jackals went back ahead for good against Chris Burica (loss, 6-4) by scoring three times on four hits. Ti'Quan Forbes' RBI single put the guests in front before Justin Mazzone's second two-run single of the night extended the lead.

Alfredo Marte's fourth hit of the game and another RBI from Josh Rehwaldt added two more before the night was done in the ninth against Augie Gallardo. By allowing the ninth-inning runs, Gallardo sees his seven-inning scoreless streak snapped.

Wrapping up the series finale in 3:57, the contest marks the longest nine-inning game in franchise history, passing a 3:24 ballgame from July 5^th of this season.

The Ottawa Titans continue their final homestand of the 2023 regular season, opening a three-game series with the Empire State Greys on Friday night at 6:30 p.m. from Ottawa Stadium. All the action can be heard on CKDJ 107.9 and 94,5 UNIK FM and live-streamed on Flo Baseball. For information on 2023 single-game tickets, group outings, nine-game mini packs, and 2024 season tickets, visit the Titans’ official website at www.ottawatitans.com.