Washington Scores Five in Third Inning to Capture Fifth-Straight Victory

WASHINGTON, Pa. (August 1) - The Washington Wild Things utilized a five-run third inning to propel them to victory on Wednesday, defeating the Normal CornBelters 9-2. The win marked Washington’s fifth-consecutive victory and their 38th of the season.

Washington (38-30) got out to an early lead in the bottom of the first inning, plating two runs. Center fielder James Harris led off the inning by reaching on a double and then was brought in by right fielder Hector Roa on a two-out, two-run home run to create a 2-0 lead.

After a scoreless second, the Wild Things offense exploded in the bottom of the third, bringing across five runs.

With no outs in the inning, first baseman Reydel Medina and Roa had back-to-back two-RBI hits. Medina started the scoring with a two-RBI single, scoring Harris and shortstop Ryan Cox. Roa followed the next at-bat with a two-RBI double, scoring left fielder Roman Collins and Medina for his third and fourth RBIs in just three innings.

Second baseman Carter McEachern drove in the fifth run of the inning by bringing in Roa on an RBI fielder’s choice to extend the Washington lead to 7-0.

Innings four through six featured scoreless play, but Normal (33-32) was able to crack the scoreboard in the top of the seventh by bringing across two runs.

First baseman Sean Hurley scored the first run for the CornBelters when he was brought in on a double play ball hit by catcher Cody Erickson. Two at-bats later, third baseman Michael Baca brought in second baseman Justin Fletcher on an RBI single to create a 7-2 contest.

Washington answered in the bottom of the seventh by plating two runs of its own. Medina led off the inning by driving a stand-up double to right field and then was brought in the next at-bat when Roa reached on an infield single with a throwing error to increase the Washington lead to 8-2. Catcher Kyle Pollock drove in Roa a few plays later on a sacrifice fly to left field for a 9-2 score.

Washington starter Chase Cunningham (5-4) earned the win for Washington after his 6.2 inning performance on Wednesday. He allowed two earned runs on nine hits while striking out three and walking two. Cunningham’s performance on Wednesday was his fifth-straight quality start.

Zach Kirby (3-6) was the losing pitcher for Normal. He threw six innings while allowing seven runs (all earned) on 10 hits. He struck out one batter and walked two.

Washington will attempt for its sixth-straight victory and back-to-back sweeps tomorrow night against Normal. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.