TAMPA, Fla. (Interstat) — The Fort Myers Mighty Mussels defeated the Tampa Tarpons 9-7 on Wednesday, June 17, 2026 at George M. Steinbrenner Field before a crowd of 696. The game lasted 2 hours, 50 minutes.

Fort Myers broke a 0-0 tie with three runs in the fifth inning, capped by an RBI single from Ryan Sprock. Tampa answered with four runs in the bottom half, including a two-run single by Austin Green and an RBI double from Bryce Martin-Grudzielanek. The Mighty Mussels erupted for five runs in the seventh, taking advantage of a fielding error by Martin-Grudzielanek and getting run-scoring singles from Luis Fragoza and Merphy Hernandez. Tampa mounted a late rally in the ninth, scoring three times on an RBI single by JoJo Jackson and a two-run homer by Engelth Urena, but fell short.

Callan Fang (1-0) earned the win with 2 2/3 innings of one-hit relief, striking out three. Matthew Tippie (2-5) took the loss. Thatcher Hurd struck out eight over 4 1/3 innings for Tampa, allowing one earned run. Quentin Young went 2 for 5 with a home run for Fort Myers.

The Mighty Mussels improved to 36-28, while the Tarpons dropped to 35-30. The teams continue their series Thursday.