OFFICIAL FRONTIER LEAGUE BOX SCORE

Augusta, NJ - For the second straight outing to open his season, Grant Larson (loss, 0-1) tossed a quality start - but it was not enough as the Ottawa Titans (2-5) lost their fourth straight, falling 3-0 to the Sussex County Miners (4-4) on Saturday.

A two-run second inning proved to be game-changing against Larson, as three straight one-out hits put the Miners up 2-0. Evan Giordano doubled to left-centre, scoring both Jason Agresti and Gabriel Maciel.

John Mead's first homer of the year the opposite way to left to start the fifth concluded the run scoring. The long ball also marked the first of the season for the Miners as a club.

The Titans had their opportunities against Miners starter Mark Moclair (win, 1-0), who only allowed three hits in the win - but walked four over five and a third.

In the sixth, the best opportunity for the Titans to break through emerged. With the bases loaded, Tyler Luneke pitched his way out of a jam as he got two big outs to keep the visitors off the board.

Larson went six - allowing three runs on seven hits, walking just one while striking out six in his second quality start of the season.

McLain Harris, Matt Dallas, and Erasmo Piñales all worked a combined two innings of shutout ball out of the bullpen.

The offensive woes continued for the Titans in the defeat - as they were kept off the board for the second time in a four-game span - leaving 12 on base in the middle game of the series. Over the first two games of the series in Sussex County, the Titans have left 23 runners on base.

The Ottawa Titans end their season-opening road trip with the finale of a three-game series against the Sussex County Miners on Sunday afternoon at 2:05 p.m. from Skylands Stadium in Augusta, New Jersey. All the action can be heard on CKDJ 107.9 and 94,5 Unique FM and live-streamed on Flo Baseball. The Titans’ home opener is scheduled for Tuesday versus the Tri-City ValleyCats at Ottawa Stadium.

For information on season tickets, group outings, and nine-game mini packs, visit the Titans’ official website at www.ottawatitans.com.