The New Jersey Jackals’ late comeback effort fell just short Tuesday afternoon as the Sussex County Miners held on for a 4-3 victory, tightening an already crowded Frontier League Atlantic East Division race.

New Jersey entered the matchup looking to bounce back after dropping four of its previous five games, but an early deficit proved too much to overcome despite a strong outing from starter Elio Serrano and a three-run sixth inning rally.

The Miners wasted no time creating pressure. On the first pitch of the game, Sussex County infielder Hunter D’Amato reached second base on a throwing error by third baseman Felix Stevens and later scored on a wild pitch to give Sussex County an early 1-0 lead.

After third baseman Sean Roby Jr. doubled off the left field wall and exited with a lower body injury, first baseman Kiko Romero delivered the big swing of the inning, launching a two-run homer to right center to extend the Miners lead to 3-0. Serrano limited further damage by striking out two batters in the frame.

New Jersey threatened in the bottom of the first after New Jersey centerfielder Aldalay Kolokie recorded the team’s first hit with an infield single, but Miners starter Kellen Brothers escaped the inning cleanly and settled into a rhythm early.

Serrano quickly responded after the rough opening inning. The right-hander retired the Miners in order in the second while striking out two more batters and continued to dominate over the middle innings.

The Jackals nearly broke through in the third after catcher Gustavo Sosa led off with a double off the netting in right field. Designated hitter Christian Hall followed with a deep fly ball that drifted just foul down the right field line, and Kolokie later drew an intentional walk to put two runners aboard. Brothers escaped the jam when Felix Stevens struck out to end the inning.

Sussex County added another run in the fifth after shortstop Dean Ferrera reached safely on a fly ball lost in the sun. Ferrera stole second, advanced to third on a wild pitch and later scored on a ground rule double from leftfielder Gabriel Maciel to push the Miners lead to 4-0.

Despite the deficit, Serrano kept New Jersey within striking distance. The right-hander recorded his ninth and tenth strikeouts during a scoreless sixth inning, finishing his night with 11 strikeouts across six innings while allowing four runs, only one earned.

The Jackals offense finally erupted in the bottom of the sixth.

Stevens opened the inning with an infield single before rightfielder Isaac Bellony followed with another hit to put two runners on with no outs. Second baseman Daunte Stuart then crushed a double off the fence in deep right center, bringing home Stevens for New Jersey’s first run of the night.

First baseman Dariel Gomez followed with an RBI groundout to score Bellony, and shortstop Connor Maryniak added a sacrifice fly that plated Stuart, cutting the deficit to just 4-3 and swinging momentum firmly toward the Jackals.

Jorge Benitez entered in relief for New Jersey in the seventh and delivered a strong inning out of the bullpen. After allowing two singles, the right-hander struck out the next two batters to strand both runners and keep the Jackals within one.

The bullpen continued to give New Jersey opportunities late. Joe Joe Rodriguez worked a clean eighth inning that featured a double play, while Ryan Steinhauer escaped trouble in the ninth after an error and intentional walk put two runners aboard.

The Jackals had chances to tie the game in the final two innings. Stevens doubled to center in the eighth before Dariel Gomez drew a two-out walk, but the rally ended on a strikeout.

In the ninth, Christian Hall worked a one-out walk and Breyln Jones entered as a pinch runner. Kolokie followed with a broken-bat infield single, bringing Frontier League home run leader Felix Stevens to the plate with two runners on base. However, Kolokie was picked off at first during the at-bat, ending the game before Stevens could get a chance to swing.

Brothers earned the win for Sussex County after allowing three earned runs over six innings with six strikeouts. The Miners bullpen closed out the final three innings to secure the victory.

The loss drops New Jersey to 5-5 on the season as the Jackals prepare for game two of the three-game series on Wednesday May 20, at 10:35 a.m at Hinchliffe Stadium.