GREAT LAKES 8, DRAGONS 6
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Great Lakes (R-H-E): 8-7-1; Dayton (R-H-E): 6-6-2
Win: Davis Chastain (8-1); Loss: Victor Diaz (3-1); Save: None
HR: Dayton: Mason Neville (8th, 0 on base in fourth inning). HR: Great Lakes: Gio Cueto (2nd, 1 on base in third inning); Mairo Martinus (1st, 1 on base in sixth inning); Eduardo Quintero (11th, 1 on base in ninth inning).
Dayton, Ohio—Great Lakes’ Eduardo Quintero hit a two-run tie-breaking home run in the top of the ninth inning and the Loons escaped a Dayton comeback effort in the bottom of the ninth to defeat the Dragons 8-6 on Sunday afternoon. With their win, the Loons won four of six games in the series.
A crowd of 8,242 was in attendance at Day Air Ballpark in the heart of the Water Street District.
Recap: The Dragons took an early lead in the second inning when Marcus Smith doubled, went to third on a wild pitch, and scored on a two-out single by Diego Omana.
The Loons scored three runs in the top of the third, getting a two-run home run by Gio Cueto against Dayton starting pitcher JP Ortiz, to go in front, 3-1.
Dayton’s Mason Neville hit a solo home run in the fourth to pull the Dragons to within one run at 3-2. The homer was Neville’s eighth with the Dragons and his 17th in the Reds farm system this season.
Great Lakes responded with two runs in the top of the sixth to take a three-run lead at 5-2. The runs came on a two-run home run by Mairo Martinus off Dayton reliever Brady Afthim.
The Dragons battled back in the bottom of the sixth when Omana delivered a two-out, two-run double to pull the Dragons back to within one run at 5-4.
In the seventh, Dayton took the lead. They loaded the bases with no outs on two walks and an error before John Michael Faile’s sacrifice fly tied the game, and Neville was hit by a pitch with three men on base to force in the go-ahead run and give Dayton a 6-5 lead.
The Loons tied the game in the top of the eighth. After a lead-off walk, Omana, the Dayton catcher, made a pick-off attempt to first base. The ball went down the right field line, all the way to the bullpen bench, where the Dragons allowed it to remain, asking for the umpire to rule that the ball had rolled out of play as the runner raced all the way around to score. But after both umpires conversed, the ruling was that the ball had actually remained in play and the run was counted. Omana was charged with a three-base throwing error that tied the game at 6-6.
In the top of the ninth, Quintero connected on a two-out, two-run home run to left field to give the Loons an 8-6 lead against Dayton reliever Victor Diaz.
In the bottom of the ninth, a two-out walk to Dayton’s Ty Doucette brought the tying run to the plate, and Neville nearly tied the game. He hit a long drive high off the fence in left center field, missing a home run by inches, but setting for a double that left runners at second and third. Omana grounded out to third to end the game.
The Dragons finished the day with six hits. Omana was 3 for 5 with three runs batted in. Neville was 2 for 4 with a home run, double, and two RBI.
Up Next: The Dragons (18-22, 57-49) do not play on Monday. They will travel to Eastlake, Ohio to open a seven-game series with the Lake County Captains (17-22, 55-49) on Tuesday night at 7:00 pm. The series will include a noon game on Wednesday and a doubleheader on Thursday, continuing through Sunday, August 16. Deivi Villafana will start for the Dragons on Tuesday.
The next home game at Day Air Ballpark in the heart of the Water Street District in Tuesday, August 18 against the Quad Cities River Bandits at 7:05 pm. For ticket information, go to daytondragons.com/tickets or call (937) 228-2287.
On the Air: All Dragons home and road games are broadcast on radio on FOX Sports 980 AM WONE. Games can be heard on smart phones, iPads, and other mobile devices via the free Dragons Mobile App, or on a computer at wone.com. Games are also available on HD Radio on 104.7 WTUI HD 2.