AVON, Ohio (August 27, 2025) – The Down East Bird Dawgs fell behind late as the Lake Erie Crushers broke open a close game with seven runs over the final two innings to hand Down East a 12-5 loss Wednesday afternoon at Crushers Stadium.

Lake Erie struck first in the opening inning when Sam Franco drove in a run to take a 1-0 lead.

The Bird Dawgs responded in the third as Trotter Harlan hit an RBI single and Kalae Harrison followed with a two-run homer to jump in front 3-1.

The Crushers answered in the bottom half with four runs on one hit to reclaim the lead at 5-3.

Yeniel Laboy pulled Down East within a run in the sixth with an RBI single, but Lake Erie pulled away late, scoring twice in the seventh and adding five more in the eighth to push the advantage to 12-4.

Down East plated a run in the ninth on Tyler Blaum’s infield single, but the Bird Dawgs left the bases loaded to end the game, falling 12-5.

Drew Henderson (4-5) took the loss, allowing five runs on three hits with four strikeouts across five innings.

Ethan Smith (7-5) earned the win, giving up four runs on eight hits while striking out five over six innings.

The Bird Dawgs drop to 36-55 and look to take the series in the rubber match against the Crushers on Thursday, August 28, with the first pitch scheduled for 6:35 p.m.