Pagan Plays Hero in 5-4 Walk-Off Win Over Ducks

Crabs left fielder makes highlight play on defense before driving in winning run

W: Endrys Briceno (1-0)

L: Ramon Santos (0-1)

WALDORF, MD – The Southern Maryland Blue Crabs (29-14) overcame a three-run deficit for a 5-4 win over the Long Island Ducks (25-18) in 10 innings on Tuesday night at Regency Furniture Stadium. The bullpen gave the Blue Crabs a chance, tossing five scoreless innings. Ezequiel Pagan threw out the would-be go-ahead run in the top of the 10th inning before delivering the walk-off sacrifice fly in the bottom of the inning. 

The Blue Crabs got creative to score a run in the bottom of the first inning. Jackson Loftin struck out to start the inning, but reached on a dropped third strike. Later in the inning, he scored an RBI infield single by Taylor Darden to give Southern Maryland a 1-0 lead.

The Ducks then jumped in front with runs in the next three innings. Anthony Garcia tied the game with a solo home run to left center field in the top of the second inning. Long Island took the lead thanks to a pair of Southern Maryland errors in the third inning. Alsander Womack cracked a solo home run of his own in the fourth inning to give the Ducks a 4-1 lead.

Despite a few tough innings, Blue Crabs starting pitcher Ian Kahaloa finished five innings. He allowed four runs, three earned, on six hits and one walk with two strikeouts.

Entering the bottom of the fifth inning, the Blue Crabs only managed one hit over their last 11 at-bats against Long Island starting pitcher Nolan Clenney. They finally started to solve him in the frame. The first two batters in the inning reached on an Ethan Wilson single and Danny Bautista Jr. double, but two outs on the basepaths made scoring tougher. Brody Fahr came through with a two-run single to center field to put Southern Maryland back within a run, 4-3.

Southern Maryland rallied to tie the game in the bottom of the seventh inning. Ryan McCarthy and Jackson Loftin started the inning with a pair of singles. Later on, Viandel Pena hit a shallow pop-up to center field, but McCarthy was able to score to turn it into a sacrifice fly, tying the game at 4-4.

Isaac Fix and Endrys Briceno both provided two scoreless innings of relief for Southern Maryland while a host of relievers for Long Island kept the Blue Crabs offense in check to send the game into extra innings.

Blue Crabs relief pitcher Endrys Briceno tossed a scoreless top of the tenth inning with help from his defense. Wilmer Difo, the Ducks’ placed runner, advanced to third base, but he was thrown out by Pagan from left field while attempting to score on a Chris Roller flyout. Briceno then struck out Jacob Robson to end the inning.

Pagan was the hero again in the bottom of the inning. Viandel Pena, Southern Maryland’s placed runner, stole third base. Pagan then lifted a game-winning sacrifice fly to score Pena, giving the Blue Crabs a 5-4 win.

The Blue Crabs continue their six-game series against the Long Island Ducks on Wednesday, June 10. First pitch is at 6:35 pm.

Wednesdays at Regency Furniture Stadium are Woof Wednesdays. Enjoy Blue Crabs baseball alongside your pup with a fun, pet-friendly atmosphere all night long. To purchase tickets, click here.

The Southern Maryland Blue Crabs have been proud members of the Atlantic League since 2008, the third-longest tenured team in the league. With a proud tradition of success on and off the field, many players have found a home while playing in front of Crustacean Nation, the nickname for the Blue Crabs’ avid fanbase. A host of former Major Leaguers have played for the Blue Crabs, including Chien-Ming Wang, Pat Mahomes Sr., and team legend Daryl Thompson. Many players have also made it to the Major Leagues after playing with Southern Maryland, including Isaac Mattson of the Pittsburgh Pirates. 2026 marks the 18th season of Blue Crabs baseball at Regency Furniture Stadium, where Clawsome Times Await.