El Paso 9 Las Vegas 3 - Thursday
WP: Koenig (1-0)
LP: Sauer (0-3)
S: None
Time: 2:27
Attn: 4,980
El Paso starting pitcher Ian Koenig tied his career high with eight strikeouts in the Chihuahuas' 9-3 win over the Las Vegas Aviators at Southwest University Park Thursday night. It was Koenig's first career Triple-A win and it ended El Paso's five-game losing streak.
Logan Gillaspie pitched three relief innings for El Paso and struck out a season-high five batters. The Chihuahuas struck out 13 Aviators hitters and walked only two. Chihuahuas reliever Hunter Stratton pitched a perfect ninth inning and hasn't allowed any runs in 8.1 home innings this season.
Catcher Blake Hunt went 3-for-4 and he's 6-for-12 with a home run and three RBIs in the series. First baseman Nick Pratto had a single and two walks and he has a .643 on-base percentage through the first three games of the series. Second baseman Gage Workman went 3-for-4 with four RBIs and center fielder Carlos Rodríguez went 3-for-5 with a double and two RBIs.
Team Records: Las Vegas (33-27, 77-56), El Paso (19-41, 54-81)
Next Game: Friday at 6:35 p.m. Mountain Time at Southwest University Park. Las Vegas RHP Joey Estes (3-7, 6.88) vs. El Paso LHP Jagger Haynes (0-4, 5.90). The game will air on 600 ESPN El Paso and www.epchihuahuas.com.