Lynchburg drops pair to Pelicans

Lynchburg dropped a pair of results Sunday at TicketReturn.com Field, including a 5-4 loss in 13 innings to conclude the doubleheader after falling 7-0 in the afternoon contest.

The Hillcats took a 4-0 lead into the seventh of the nightcap, but four unearned runs tied the game for Myrtle Beach to force extra innings. A bases-loaded walk to Eloy Jimenez ended the game in the bottom of the 13th.

Lynchburg built its 4-0 advantage beginning in the third. Willi Castro and Claudio Bautista had back-to-back singles, andYonathan Mendoza advanced them with a sacrifice bunt. Ka’ai Tom grounded out to first base to bring home the first run of the game. The Hillcats added another in the fifth when Daniel Salters reached on an error and eventually came home on a base hit byMendoza.

Leading 2-0 in the sixth, the Hillcats tacked on two more. Connor Marabell drew a leadoff walk and proceeded to steal both second and third base. Andrew Calica doubled to drive him in and make it a 3-0 game. Calica advanced to third on a bunt single by Ivan Castillo and scored on a wild pitch.

With one out in the seventh inning, Jesse Hodges reached on a fielding error by Castro. That opened the door for the Pelicans to score four unearned runs with two outs in the frame. With the bases loaded, Daniel Spingola doubled to left-center field to plate all three runners and tie the game, 4-4.

Lynchburg’s offense stalled in extra innings, going 0-18 after the seventh. Pelicans pitchers combined to retire the final 21 batters they faced. Robert Garcia singled to begin the 13th and scored the winning run when Jimenez drew the one-out walk to complete the come-from-behind victory.

In the first game, Lynchburg only managed five hits and never had multiple baserunners in the same inning. Salters had a double to represent the only extra-base hit for the Hillcats, who were shut out for the fifth time of the season in a 7-0 defeat. Eddy Martinez and Matt Rose homered for the Pelicans.

Lynchburg continues its road trip with a four-game series at Winston-Salem Monday at 7 p.m. Shane Bieber (0-0, 1.50) will take the mound against the Dash’s Aron McRee (0-5, 4.33). Fans can listen to the game live at www.lynchburg-hillcats.com with coverage beginning at 6:50.