Saltdogs Outslugged by Monarchs
by Michael Dixon, Lincoln Saltdogs
KANSAS CITY, Kansas – Rayder Ascanio had two hits, including a two-run homer, but the ‘Dogs allowed three homers in a 14-10 loss to the Kansas City Monarchs at Legends Field on Saturday night.
The Monarchs (48-31) opened the scoring on David Thompson’s two-run homer in the 1st. Lincoln (37-43) tied the game on Skyler Weber’s RBI single and Randy Norris’s RBI double in the 2nd, and Josh Altmann’s sac fly gave the ‘Dogs a 3-2 lead in the 3rd.
Kansas City regained the lead on Matt Adams’s two-run homer in the 3rd, but the ‘Dogs got two-run homers from Ascanio and Jason Rogers to take a 7-4 lead in the 4th.
Kansas City got two back on an RBI single from Ryan Grotjohn and a sacrifice fly from Kevin Santa in the 4th, but the Saltdogs added a run on Luke Roskam’s pinch-hit RBI double in the 5th.
The Monarchs then scored eight unanswered runs. In the 5th, Grotjohn drove in two with a double and Santa plated two more with a single. Adams drove in another run on a fielder’s choice in the 6th, while Thompson hit a two-run single in the 7th. Casey Gillaspie’s solo homer made it 14-8 in the 8th.
Hunter Clanin hit a two-run homer in the 9th, and the ‘Dogs hit three home runs with double-digit runs scored for the third consecutive game, but Lincoln’s three-game winning streak came to an end.
Zach St. Pierre allowed six runs on seven hits across four innings. Josh Norwood took the loss, allowing three runs in 1/3rd of an inning, and David Zoz allowed two runs across 1 and 2/3 innings. Carson Lance allowed two runs in the 7th, and Jonathan Cheshire allowed one run in the 8th.
The series concludes Sunday afternoon. First pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m., and pregame coverage begins at 2:30 p.m. on ESPN Lincoln 101.5 FM/1480 AM.
The Saltdogs are playing their 21st season in Lincoln! Visit saltdogs.com and follow us @saltdogsball on all social media for information regarding tickets and promotions all season long.