The Colorado Springs Sky Sox split today’s doubleheader versus the Round Rock Express, winning game one 7-4 and losing game two 5-4.
Keon Broxton led off the bottom of the first inning of game one for the Sky Sox with a single, moving up to second on a stolen base. Broxton advanced to third on a Mauricio Dubon groundout and scored on a Brett Phillips single to give Colorado Springs an early 1-0 lead. Two batters later Ji-Man Choi lined a double to the left-center field gap, scoring Phillips and extending the Sky Sox lead to 2-0.
Dubon made it a 3-0 ballgame with a solo home run in the bottom of the third off of Round Rock starter David Hurlbut. It was Dubon’s first homer of the 2018 campaign.
Freddy Peralta gave up his first run of the season in the top of the fourth inning to make it 3-1, as Christian Lopes singled to left field to score Willie Calhoun.
Round Rock scored again in the top of the sixth to make it 3-2, as Tommy Joseph doubled in Calhoun from second.
Nate Orf roped his first triple of the season in the bottom of the sixth inning, scoring both Phillips and pinch-runner Johnny Davis to add two insurance runs and make it 5-2. Orf came home on the very next pitch via a Tyrone Taylor sacrifice fly to make it 6-2. Jacob Nottingham then belted a solo homer to make it 7-2 Sky Sox.
Round Rock rallied for two more runs in the top of the final frame to make it 7-4, but not enough to surmount the Colorado Springs lead, as the Sky Sox took game one.
In game two of Sunday’s doubleheader, Round Rock struck first, scoring a run in the top of the second. Nick Noonan singled to left field, scoring Destin Hood to give the Express a 1-0 lead.
The Express scored again in the top of the third inning, first on an RBI single from Hood scoring Calhoun, and then again on an RBI double by Cameron Rupp scoring Hood, giving Round Rock a 3-0 lead.
In the top of the fourth inning, Hanser Alberto scored on a wild pitch by Sky Sox pitcher Angel Ventura to make it 4-0, with Christian Lopes advancing to third. Lopes then scored on a sac fly by Scott Heineman to make it a 5-0 affair.
Colorado Springs got on the board in the bottom of the fourth frame via a Choi single that scored Christian Bethancourt, making it 5-1. Choi then scored on an error by Round Rock, before Orf scored on a wild pitch to make it 5-3.
The Sky Sox pulled within one in the bottom of the fifth, when Broxton scored on a Dubon double to make it 5-4.
The Colorado Springs rally fell just shy, as the Express won game two 5-4 to split the doubleheader.
The Sky Sox head into the final game against Round Rock tomorrow with an 11:00 a.m. matchup and Math Day.
