(Photo courtesy of Altoona Curve. Photo of Cam Vieaux)

Vieaux (Loss, 3-2) piled up seven punchouts over the first four innings of his start while the Curve (22-22) and Fisher Cats (21-22) played to a scoreless tie. He whiffed one to end the first and had two strikeouts in each of his following three frames before three more in the sixth.

The only one of Vieaux’s six innings without a strikeout was a two-run fifth by the Fisher Cats. Chad Spanberger broke the 0-0 tie with a one-out, solo homer over the right-field wall. New Hampshire manufactured their second run as Vinny Capra singled after the homer and Forrest Wall doubled him in.

Vieaux’s 10 strikeouts are a new career-best and the first 10-strikeout performance by a Curve pitcher since June 14, 2018, by fellow lefty Taylor Hearn. It was the 28th double-digit strikeout game all-time by an Altoona pitcher.

Blake Cederlind closed out the game on the mound with two scoreless innings and fanned three more batters to run the strikeout counter to 13 for the Curve pitching staff in the loss.

The lone run for Altoona scored in the sixth on a solo homer to left-center by Jerrick Suiter, his first of the season.

The Curve had a bases-loaded chance with one out during the third inning against New Hampshire starter Hector Perez (Win, 3-2), but the threat ended on an infield pop out and an inning-ending fielder’s choice. Altoona stranded 10 runners on base and went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position.

The series in Manchester concludes on Thursday with an 11:35 a.m. start as right-hander Scooter Hightower (2-4, 5.63) takes the hill for the Curve against New Hampshire righty Patrick Murphy (2-4, 3.35).

After a season-long 10-game road trip, the Curve return home on Friday, May 31 and open a three-game series against the New Hampshire Fisher Cats as the Allegheny Yinzers, presented by Keller Engineers, with postgame fireworks, presented by Altoona Honda, set to Pittsburgh-sports jams.