Tepesch Deals as Round Rock Tops New Orleans 2-1

ROUND ROCK, Texas - For the second straight evening the Round Rock Express (18-12) received a quality start from their pitcher and scored late runs to scoot past the New Orleans Zephyrs (14-16). This time, it was RHP Nick Tepesch (3-2, 3.61) dealing from the mound as the E-Train claimed a 2-1 victory over the Zephyrs on Monday night. The righty went seven innings deep, allowing just one run on five hits while striking out three.

Tepesch escaped jams in the second and fourth innings to keep the visitors off the board early. After DH Don Kelly singled with one out in the second, he advanced to third on a single courtesy of LF Isaac Galloway. The left fielder promptly stole second base to put two runners in scoring position with still just one out. Tepesch responded with a pair of electrifying strikeouts to escape the jam.

In the fourth, a unique sequence of events eliminated a pair of go-ahead baserunners for the Zephyrs. After back-to-back singles from 1B Xavier Scruggs and CF Destin Hood, Kelly popped a high fly ball just past the third base bag. A slight miscommunication between 3B Patrick Kivlehan and SS Jurickson Profar allowed the ball to fall to the grass just past the dirt beyond third base. Kivlehan instinctively picked up the ball and rocketed it to Tepesch, who was covering third, to record the force out. In the very next at-bat, Galloway grounded to Kivlehan, who knocked the ball down on the dirt, scooped it up, and tagged a sprinting Hood to record the second straight force out. 3B Matt Juengel then flied out to the inning.

After a span of eight straight Zephyrs hitters retired, Tepesch made his only mistake of the day with two outs the sixth inning, a 90 m.p.h. fastball that Hood launched deep into the left field berm for a solo home run. Tepesch responded by retiring the next four hitters in a row to conclude his outing.

Round Rock answered an inning later, thanks to a little help from Zephyrs reliever Cody Ege. The left-hander struggled to find his command early, failing to land a pitch the strike zone on 12 of his first 14 attempts, resulting in a bases-loaded jam. As he has done so many times before, 3B Patrick Kivlehan came up with a clutch late hit - a single that scored C Michael McKenry to knot the game at one. In the next at-bat, RF Drew Robinson grounded into a 4-6-3 double play, scoring CF Jared Hoying from third to give the E-Train their first lead of the night at 2-1. CF James Jones couldn't add to the advantage, as he struck out to cut the rally short. Ege took the loss after just eight of his 23 total pitches found the strike zone.

RHP Carlos Fisher then recorded his first four-out save in an Express uniform, mowing down the last four Zephyrs hitters in order to shut the door on the 2-1 win and give Round Rock their first home series victory of the season.

The Express open a four-game set with the Oklahoma City Dodgers (Los Angeles Dodgers affiliate) Tuesday evening at 7:05 p.m. LHP Michael Roth (2-0, 1.42) is set to get the nod for Round Rock while Oklahoma City plans on countering with RHP Zach Lee (4-1, 4.73). The series marks the first time the two rivals face off since last season's American Conference Championship Series, which the E-Train swept 3-0.

Single game tickets are available along with season ticket packages and group discounts. For more information on the Express, visit www.RoundRockExpress.com or call (512) 255-2255. Keep up with the Express on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter!