Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. – The Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (12-10) ran into a red-hot Inland Empire 66ers (9-12) lineup in an 8-3 loss on Tuesday night at Morongo Field.
The 66ers attacked right away, opening the game up in the early innings. A two-out double started the scoring in the top of the first, and two frames later, a three-run rally raced them ahead 4-0.
Inland Empire kept their bats going in the middle innings, adding to their advantage. A run in the fifth alongside another two in the sixth created even more separation from the Quakes, pushing their lead to 7-0.
Rancho Cucamonga showed signs of life in the bottom of the sixth, manufacturing a two-run rally to cut into the deficit. Slate Alford’s RBI single cashed in a Kevyn Castillo one-out double, and following a Jonny McGill two-bagger, 66ers reliever Reese Lumpkin uncorked a wild pitch, allowing Alford to come home and pull the Quakes back within five at 7-2.
In their next turn at bat, the Quakes turned to two-out hitting to march even closer. Athanael Duarte and Marlon Quintero notched singles to open the bottom of the seventh, and Castillo stepped up to drive Duarte in. His base hit cut the Inland Empire edge to 7-3.
However, that was as close as the Quakes could get. The 66ers tacked on another tally in the top of the ninth, and two shutdown innings on the mound closed out a series-opening victory.
The Quakes can even the series up against the 66ers at one game on Wednesday at 6:30 PM. LHP Alton Davis starts for Rancho Cucamonga, while Inland Empire sends RHP Aiden Butler to the hill. It is also Raising Cane’s Bark in the Ballpark, and fans can bring their four-legged friends with them to Morongo Field.