Chukars make it back-to-back wins in Missoula

MISSOULA, Mont. — Starter Gary Grosjean continued his second-half resurgence, leading the Idaho Falls Chukars to victory with the aid of shortstop Anthony Mata’s bat.

After losing the first two games of a six-game set against the Missoula PaddleHeads (58-24, 25-9), the Chukars (46-35, 19-15) have bounced back with consecutive wins and set themselves up for a chance to win a massive road series.

Grosjean (W, 10-5) held the PaddleHeads to eight hits and two earned runs in his 7 innings of work, and has now earned the victory in three of his last four starts.

He was granted an early advantage when Mata slammed a three-run homer to left-center in the second inning, to give Idaho Falls a 4-1 lead. As the game remained low-scoring into the middle innings, Mata added an RBI double in the sixth before scoring a run later the same inning to give his Chukars a 6-2 lead.

With the win, the Chukars remain in playoff position with just 14 games left on the schedule. They face the same PaddleHeads squad Saturday night, with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 p.m.

PBL second-half standings
1. Oakland Ballers (26-8)
2. Missoula PaddleHeads (25-9)
3. Ogden Raptors (20-14)
4. Idaho Falls Chukars (19-15)
T5. Billings Mustangs (17-17)
T5. Glacier Range Riders (17-17)
7. Rocky Mountain Vibes (16-18)
T8. Great Falls Voyagers (14-20)
T8. Yuba-Sutter High Wheelers (14-20)
10. Boise Hawks (13-21)
11. Grand Junction Jackalopes (12-22)
12. Colorado Springs Sky Sox (11-23)