Big day from Shane Matheny (four RBIs) lifts Richmond to 7-5 win over Portland

Shane Matheny drove in four runs as the Richmond Flying Squirrels beat the Portland Sea Dogs, 7-5, to close the series on Sunday afternoon at The Diamond.

The Flying Squirrels (50-46, 17-10), the Double-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants, won five of six against the Sea Dogs (56-40, 16-11), the Double-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox, in this week’s series.

Matheny broke a 5-5 tie in the bottom of the fifth inning with an RBI single. Brandon Martorano followed with an RBI single to push the Richmond lead to 7-5 against Portland reliever Brenden Cellucci (Loss, 1-2).

Juan Sanchez (Save, 3) struck out five batters over the final two innings.

The Flying Squirrels jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the second inning. Logan Wyatt and Ismael Munguia drove RBI singles and Matheny hit a three-run homer against Portland starter Chih-Jung Liu.

The Sea Dogs closed the score to 5-2 in the third with a two-run homer by Nick Yorke. Phillip Sikes brought Portland within two runs with a solo homer in the fourth.

In the fifth, Portland tied the game with a two-run double by Alex Binelas.

Clay Helvey (Win, 1-0) threw 2.1 scoreless innings and allowed one hit for Richmond.

The Flying Squirrels open a six-game series on the road against the Altoona Curve on Tuesday night. Right-hander Carson Seymour (2-2, 4.06) will start for Richmond, opposed by Altoona right-hander Beau Sulser (0-1, 6.00). First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. at Peoples Natural Gas Field.

After the road trip, the Flying Squirrels return to The Diamond to open a six-game homestand against the Bowie Baysox, Double-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, on Tuesday, August 8. Tickets are available online at SquirrelsBaseball.com/Tickets, by phone at 804-359-FUNN (3866) or in person at the Flying Squirrels ticket office.