MANCHESTER, N.H. – As the New Hampshire Fisher Cats celebrated Manchester’s connection to the invention of the chicken tender on Saturday, they split a doubleheader against the Portland Sea Dogs.
In the originally scheduled game, New Hampshire won 4-0, limiting Portland to just three hits over the seven-inning contest.
New Hampshire ultimately got all the offense it needed off a two-RBI double from Spencer Horwitz in the first, with L.J. Talley adding another pair of runs in the sixth off a home run to right.
Paxton Schultz (4-4) was the winning pitcher for New Hampshire, going 5 1/3 innings in his start, walking two and giving up two hits while striking out four batters. Sean Rackoski struck out three of the five batters he faced to earn his first save of the year.
The roles were reversed in the make-up for Friday’s rained out game, as Portland defeated New Hampshire 2-0 in seven innings.
The Fisher Cats managed just two hits, squandering quality pitching performances from Adam Kloffenstein and Gabriel Ponce.
Kloffenstein pitched the first the first four innings, giving up both of Portland’s runs in the third, falling to 0-1 on the year with the loss. He allowed four hits and two walks to Portland batters against seven strikeouts.
Ponce allowed two more hits and a walk while striking out three Portland batters over the other three innings.
The series concludes on Sunday at 1:35 p.m.