Storm Use 10 Runs in Three Innings and Cruise to Win Over Rawhide, LE Back at .500.
LAKE ELSINORE, CA - In a matchup that wasn’t close from start to finish, the Storm (9-9) ambushed the Rawhide (5-13) with 10 runs in the first three innings. Lake Elsinore claimed game three of the six-game set against Visalia 13-6 to claw back to .500 for the first time in nearly three weeks.
After the Storm pulled off a dramatic walk-off win last night, the Hide knew they had to make as quick of an impact as possible. Visalia second baseman JD Dix led off the game with a single and immediately stole second and third to put himself just 90 feet away for the game’s opening run. Jakey Josepha did his job right after with a sacrifice fly to take an early lead.
After that though, it was all Lake Elsinore. The Storm got it back quick with a leadoff single for Ryan Wideman and a two-run home run from Bradley Frye. That was the third baseman’s second home run of the year and helped keep his average north of .400. Right after, Truitt Madonna laced a single just before Justin DeCriscio and Jose Verdugo quickly recorded the first two outs of the evening. From there, the inning fell apart for Visalia.
Luke Cantwell reached on an error by Rawhide shortstop Eliesbert Alejos. Kerrington Cross followed with an RBI triple to the deepest part of the park in left-center field. With Cross just a base away, Visalia catcher Carlos Virahonda made an errant throw on a pickoff attempt that drifted into left field to score Cross. Just like that, it was 5-1.
After a scoreless top half, Lake Elsinore plated two more in the second. Conner Westenburg and Wideman reached safely to lead off the inning, then both stole second and third to put two runners in scoring position with nobody out. In Frye’s second at-bat, the third baseman nubbed a weak ground ball that stayed in the infield.
After Enyervert Perez threw home to attempt to get Westenburg, Virahonda waited for the throw while in the basepath, which drew a catcher’s interference call. Westenburg was safe after the ruling, and Frye made it to first without a throw. Madonna followed it up with a sacrifice fly to score the Storm’s seventh run of the night.
In the third, Lake Elsinore made two quick outs from Verdugo and Cantwell. That was followed by two walks and a hit by pitch, which loaded the bases for Wideman. Cross then scored from third on a wild pitch, and Wideman delivered a two-RBI double to clear the bases and give the Storm a 10-1 lead.
A scoreless fourth led to Visalia getting some runs back in the fifth. Dix, Josepha, and Virahonda began the inning with three straight singles. Jose Mejia and Ivan Luciano walked with the bases loaded to give the Rawhide their second and third runs of the night. In his first appearance of the series for the Hide, Abdias De La Cruz hit a sac-fly to cut the deficit to six.
The sixth inning went scoreless as well, but the seventh gave the Storm some more insurance. Justin DeCriscio ripped a two-RBI single down the left field line to extend the Lake Elsinore advantage to 12-4. Visalia responded with two more of its own in the eighth on a two-run single from Virahonda. In the home-half, Westenburg brought home his twelfth run batted in on a single to end the scoring for the night at 19 total runs. The Storm took it 13-6 and improved to 9-9 to remain just one game back of first place in the South Division.
Lake Elsinore returns to action on Friday as it faces Visalia for the fourth game of the six-game series from Diamond Stadium. The Storm will turn to LHP Kruz Schoolcraft (0-1, 20.77 ERA) to face Rawhide RHP Chung-Hsiang Huang (0-1, 2.38 ERA). 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.