Pensacola Pelicans Beat Grand Prairie Air Hogs 8-4 - American Association

Pensacola - The Pensacola Pelicans are tied for first place in the American Association South Division standings after defeating the Grand Prairie Air Hogs 8-4 on Wednesday night. Weather delayed the start of the game for an hour and a half, but once it began the Pelicans and starter Dane DeValk controlled the game for the majority of the evening.
 
Grand Prairie earned their first run in the second inning when Mike Conroy tripled and scored following a double by Chad Gabriel.
 
The Pelicans used a five-run third inning to erase a 1-0 Air Hogs’ lead and score all the runs the Pels would need in the game. Luis Guance walked and Kevin Reynolds had a bunt-single. Francisco Leandro followed with one of his own, and all three runners came home on a double by Antoin Gray. Gray scored on a single by Marcos Rodriguez, and Rodriguez came home when he stole third and the throw went into left field.
 
Reynolds added more insurance in the fourth, reaching on a base hit and stealing second, coming in when Rodriguez found first base on an error by the shortstop. An inning later Chase Burch walked on four straight pitches and Adam Darby notched a single. Dallas Christison sacrificed himself 5-3, and Luis Guance brought both runners in on a base hit to put Pensacola up 8-1.
 
Grand Prairie added three runs in the bottom of the fifth, landing J.B. Tucker on first when the third baseman committed an error. Jonathan Dziomba singled. Aaron Garza brought both men in with a triple, and Daniel Berg thanked Garza by plating him with a single.
 
The 8-4 Pelicans’ lead would hold for the rest of the game, as after Dane DeValk pitched two outs into the seventh inning, Ron Hill closed it down the rest of the way. DeValk went 6.2 innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on 11 hits, walking no one, and striking out six. Ron Hill picked up three K’s of his own, yielding just one hit as he shut down the Air Hogs for 2.1 innings.
 
Four Pelicans had two hits, including Antoin Gray and his 3-RBI double. Leandro went 2-4 with a single, double, and walk, and Kevin Reynolds had a pair of singles and a stolen base, scoring twice. Adam Darby singled twice, and Luis Guance walked twice, going 1-2 with a 2-RBI single.

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