NILES — The Mahoning Valley Scrappers completed what was a scheduled six-game homestand Sunday with a much-needed 7-4 win over State College.

The victory, played at a sun-soaked 7 17 Credit Union Field, provided a ray of sunshine to what was an otherwise agonizing week for both the team and the Scrappers’ front office. The homestand included three losses and a pair of games canceled due to poor air quality caused by the Canadian wildfires. Saturday’s game — a Jose Ramirez Bobblehead Night — was dampened by the issuance of severe thunderstorm warnings and on-again, off-again showers throughout the night.

Sunday’s victory snapped a seven game losing streak.

The Scrappers (2-7 / 15-23) scored the game’s first run in the bottom of the first courtesy of a Bryce Hubbard RBI single.

State College tied the game in the third on a Trent Turner double that scored a run.

The Spikes took a 3-1 lead in the top of the fourth. Three stolen bases, a walk and a wild pitch helped the Spikes score a pair of runs.

The Spikes recorded two quick outs to start the bottom of the fourth before five consecutive MV batters reached base, giving the Scrappers a 5-3 advantage. Jackson Hugus singled, then scored on a towering home run to left field off the bat of Jordan Taylor. Back-to-back walks were followed by RBI base hits off the bats of Maddox Mihalakis and Zion Williams.

State College scored its final run in the fifth.

The Scrappers scored a pair of runs in the eighth to extend their lead to three. A Cooper Vance groundout scored one run, followed by a Mihalakis single that pushed across the final run of the game.

A trio of Scrappers relievers kept the Spikes off the board while limiting them to just two hits through the final four innings. State College committed five errors in the game.

State College also experienced a hectic week because of the air quality levels. The Spikes had their Thursday home game against Williamsport canceled because of the smoke. They boarded a bus at 9 a.m. Friday and headed to Niles, only to learn that their Friday game with the Scrappers was scrapped.

Both the Scrappers and Spikes had an off-day last Monday, meaning they played just two games in a five-day stretch.

“It was frustrating in the sense that we just began the second half of the season, and we were looking to get into a routine,” Spikes coach Dave Trembley said. “As a manager you want to let the players get in their reps, you want to set a pitching rotation, you want the team to get acclimated to the travel and the everyday play.”

Trembley was also with the Spikes in 2023 when they had a game at West Virginia canceled due to poor air quality.

“Pretty crazy, I have been in baseball a lifetime. I’ve been in games that were snowed-out, rained out, but never smoked out until 2023,” Trembley said. “Now I’ve been involved in three of them in three years.”

Trembley, 74-years-old, is in his 51st season as what he describes as “a teacher of the game.” Trembley began his baseball coaching career at Daniel Murphy High School in Los Angeles, where he served as a teacher and a coach for three years from 1977-1979. He then taught and coached at Antelope Valley College for five years before landing his first professional gig in 1984 as a Los Angeles-area scout for the Chicago Cubs.

Since then, Trembley has managed at every level of professional ball. He was a minor league manager for 20 years. He was an instructor in the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Korea and Taiwan.

In 2007 at the age of 55, Trembley was named manager of the Baltimore Orioles — a role he held for four years. He then became the Director of Player Development for the Atlanta Braves, a bench coach and third base coach for the Houston Astros.

“I view myself as a teacher, baseball just happens to be my subject,” Trembley said. “I really enjoy coaching in this league. The league continues to improve every year, in every way. And the players we’ve had are eager to learn. They are willing to focus on fundamentals. I love what I’m doing today as much as I did when I first started out.”

The Scrappers begin a two-game series tonight at Aberdeen. Following a day off on Wednesday, the Scrappers will return home Thursday for the start of a three-game series against West Virginia.