IronPigs edge WooSox 5-4 to snap four-game skid
Ryan Cusick struck out Kristian Campbell on a full-count pitch as the IronPigs survived a ninth-inning scare and finally ended their four-game slide.
Lehigh Valley spent Thursday night doing just enough to stay ahead, then one last pitch made it count. The IronPigs beat Worcester 5-4 at Coca-Cola Park, snapping a four-game skid with a win that never settled down until Ryan Cusick froze Kristian Campbell on a full-count strikeout in the ninth.
The game looked comfortable early because Lehigh Valley kept stacking runs in the first three innings. Felix Reyes brought home Dylan Moore with a sacrifice fly in the first, Paul McIntosh added an RBI single in the second, and Bryan De La Cruz lined an RBI hit in the third to push the IronPigs to a 3-0 lead. That kind of early separation mattered against a Worcester club that had already taken the first two games of the six-game set, including a 5-3 win in nine innings on Tuesday and a 7-4 win in 10 on Wednesday.
Worcester answered with the kind of power that can erase a margin in a hurry. Max Ferguson and Tyler McDonough hit back-to-back solo homers in the fourth, then Tsung-Che Cheng opened the fifth with another blast to tie it at 3-3. That swing turned the game into a test of nerve, and Lehigh Valley finally found a response in the sixth.
Christian Cairo doubled to start the frame, moved into scoring position, and came home on Carter Kieboom’s hit to put the IronPigs back in front. Kieboom later crossed the plate himself on Dylan Carlson’s sacrifice fly, giving Lehigh Valley a 5-3 cushion and handing the decisive inning to the bullpen. Gabriel Barbosa took it from there, covering three relief innings to earn the win, while Devin Sweet took the loss after allowing the go-ahead run.
The WooSox still had one more push left. Allan Castro drove in a run with two outs in the ninth to cut the deficit to one, and Nathan Hickey drew a walk to load the bases and put the tying run on. Cusick ended the threat, earning his first save of the season and sealing a win that felt far tighter than the final margin suggested.
Kieboom, McIntosh and Reyes each finished with two hits, and the balanced night at the plate gave Lehigh Valley a much-needed lift. The IronPigs improved to 33-39, Worcester fell to 35-33, and the pressure that had built over four straight losses finally broke with one clean strike.
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