LAKE ELSINORE, CA - Trying to avoid falling down 0-3 in the first half of the six-game series against Ontario, Lake Elsinore scratched and clawed back into it and never led until the seventh to pull off a 5-2 comeback win against the Tower Buzzers.
Ontario struck early with a run in the first thanks to an RBI single by Ching-Hsien Ko. It went down as an unearned run after an error by Jorge Quintana allowed West to come in and score. The lead was short-lived, at least a little. The Storm answered in the third when Nu’u Contrades mashed his first-ever professional baseball home run. The third baseman sent it 413 feet to left-centerfield to tie the game at one after three.
The fourth and fifth went scoreless, but the sixth was eventful for both sides. The Tower Buzzers took the lead with a run-scoring single from Javier Herrera for his third hit of the night. That would be the last run Ontario would score. In the home half, Alex Conover wanted in on the fun. In his second-ever game, the left fielder drilled his first-ever pro homer to left and tied the game right back up. It was the new guys that provided Lake Elsinore the crucial spark tonight.
The Storm added one in the seventh after Conover was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to knock in one more. An inning later, Augie Lopez ripped a two-run double off the right-field wall for his first-ever pro hit and RBIs. The Storm scored four of their five runs in the final three innings and catapulted in front of the Tower Buzzers to pick up a 5-2 win. That moves the Storm to 1-2 in the six-game set in what continues to shape up to be a potential playoff preview between Lake Elsinore and Ontario.
Lake Elsinore returns to action on Friday to face Ontario for game four of the six-game set from Diamond Stadium. This is the fifth series of the year between the Storm and the Tower Buzzers, with Lake Elsinore leading 11-10. The Storm will send LHP Kruz Schoolcraft (2-5, 5.56) to the mound to face off against Tower Buzzers RHP Will Gagnon (4-1, 3.86). First pitch is scheduled for 6:45 p.m. PT.
About the Lake Elsinore Storm
The Lake Elsinore Storm are the Single-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres in the California League. For more information on the Storm, visit milb.com/lake-elsinore. For information about tickets to any of Lake Elsinore’s 66 home games, call (951) 245-4487 or email: info@stormbaseball.com.