SUNS LEVEL THE SERIES WITH 8-6 WIN OVER ‘BIRDS

‘Birds Remain in First Place in Northern Division

Salisbury, Md. – The Delmarva Shorebirds mounted a rally in the ninth inning but fell short, 8-6, in game two of the series against the Hagerstown Suns. The series is now tied at one heading into game three on Monday at 6:35 p.m.

The Shorebirds jumped out to a lead in the top of the third inning. Steve Bumbry opened the frame with a single to left field. After moving to second on a ground out, Bumbry scored on a double to give the ‘Birds a 1-0 lead. Two batters later, Ty Kelly singled up the middle and Soriano threw wild to first to score Rosa. With Rosa at second, Brian Conley hit an RBI single to right field to stretch the lead to 3-0.

The Suns roared back with five runs in the third against Shorebirds starter Matt Hobgood. Sandy Leon started the rally with a walk. Eury Perez then was hit by a pitch on his lower back. A double steal put both runners into scoring position. Then, Francisco Soriano bounced out to second to drive home Leon. Sean Nicol followed with a single to score Perez. The next two batters singled to load the bases. Matt Hobgood then tossed two wild pitches to score Nicol and Steven Souza. Destin Hood also hit an RBI single to plate Justin Bloxom to push the lead to 5-3.

The Suns plated one run in the fifth and two in the seventh to build an 8-3 lead.

The Shorebirds fought back in the late innings. Ty Kelly hit a one out solo homer over the right-center field wall to trim the lead to 8-4.

In the ninth, Mikey Planeta hit a one out single to right field. After stealing second, Michael Ohlman blasted a double off the center field wall to score Planeta, which cut the deficit to 8-5. Garabez Rosa followed with a double to deep left field to score Ohlman and get within two runs. Dean Weaver put an end to the rally by striking out T.J. Baxter.

Orioles first rounder Matt Hobgood was pinned with the loss in five innings. He allowed six hits and six runs. Glenn Gibson earned the win in two innings of relief.

The Shorebirds play game three of the series on Monday night at 6:35 p.m.