LAKE ELSINORE, CA - It was very evident last night during the Storm’s 10-8 comeback win that a switch was flipped from the previous few games. Lake Elsinore trailed at one point 6-0 before rattling off eight straight runs. The Storm continued to carry that momentum over to Diamond Stadium again tonight with a 5-1 win over the Tower Buzzers for Lake Elsinore’s third straight win against Ontario.
The first three innings went scoreless with both teams stranding a combined six runners. That changed in the fourth when the Storm opened the scoring for the first time this series. After a one-out walk from Jorge Quintana, Jose Verdugo singled him over to third and put runners on the corners for Jesmaylin Arias. The right-fielder notched his first career Single-A extra-base hit with a two-run triple. Truitt Madonna flew into a double play just a batter later, but Lake Elsinore struck first in the fourth and held a 2-0 lead.
Just an inning later, the Storm tacked on three more runs to their lead. Augie Lopez led off the fifth with a walk, and Qrey Lott followed with a single to put runners on first and second. That turned the lineup back to the top of the order for Nu’u Contrades, who singled again to load the bases. Lake Elsinore was content just moving station-to-station before Alex Conover laced a two-run double down into the right-field corner and doubled the Storm lead. With Contrades on third, Quintana lifted a flyball to center for a sacrifice fly and ended the Storm scoring to cap off a 5-0 lead.
Ontario got one back in the sixth thanks to a sacrifice fly from Francisco Espinoza. Other than that, the Tower Buzzers went down quietly. Lake Elsinore’s staff limited a potent Ontario offense to five hits and faced just two batters over the minimum for the final three innings. That’s the third straight win for the Storm over the Tower Buzzers and allowed Lake Elsinore to clinch the regular season series with one game to play. Ontario still leads the South Division by four games. It’s very possible that tomorrow is not the final time these two teams will meet up in the 2026 season.
Lake Elsinore returns to action on Sunday to face Ontario for the final game 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 13-10. The Storm will send RHP Luis Maracara (2-3, 7.02) to the mound to face off against Tower Buzzers RHP Tyler Glasnow (0-0, 0.00). First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 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.