Stripers Whip Pawtucket 7-5 for Seventh Straight Win

PAWTUCKET, RI - The Gwinnett Stripers (25-16) extended their winning streak to seven games with a 7-5 win over the Pawtucket Red Sox (14-24) Friday night in the opener of a three-game series at McCoy Stadium. The Stripers got home runs from Travis Demeritte, Jack Lopez, and Adam Duvall, and have now hit 13 homers in four games on the road trip.
Scoring Recap:  The Red Sox took a 2-0 lead against Stripers' starting pitcher Kolby Allard in the first inning, getting an RBI single from Rusney Castillo and a sacrifice fly from Josh Ockimey. Demeritte (7) tied it at 2-2 in the top of the second with a two-run shot to left off Pawtucket starting pitcher Matthew Kent. Three batters later, Lopez (1) crushed a three-run homer to left to put Gwinnett ahead 5-2. Duvall (14) made it 6-2 in the top of the third by blasting a solo shot to right-center off Kent. After an RBI double by Sam Travis off Allard in the bottom of the third trimmed the lead to 6-3, the Stripers made it 7-3 in the fourth as Duvall drew a bases-loaded walk from Domingo Tapia. Allard allowed a two-run homer to Jantzen Witte (1) in the bottom of the fourth, but Pawtucket would get no closer than 7-5.

Stripers Stats: Allard (W, 3-2) went 5.2 innings with eight hits, five runs (four earned), two walks, and three strikeouts on a season-high 105 pitches. The bullpen trio of Thomas Burrows (H, 1), Grant Dayton (H, 2), and A.J. Minter (S, 1) combined for 3.1 scoreless innings with two hits and five strikeouts. Offensively, Lopez was 2-for-4 with a double, homer, and three RBIs, and Demeritte was 2-for-4 with a homer and two RBIs.
Red Sox Stats: Kent (L, 0-1) was tagged for seven earned runs on six hits in 3.1 innings. Travis went 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI, and Witte went 2-for-3 with a homer and two RBIs. Brock Holt and Dustin Pedroia, both playing on rehab assignments for the Boston Red Sox, each finished 1-for-3 with a run scored.
Postgame Notes: The Stripers have hit an International League-leading 72 homers in 41 games this season, including a Gwinnett single-month record 39 homers through 16 games in May (2.44 HR/game). Demeritte extended his on-base streak to 20 games and his hitting streak to seven games. Duvall's homer was his fifth in his last seven games. The Stripers' seven-game winning streak is tied for the longest in Gwinnett history (last: July 20-27, 2016).
Next Game (Saturday, May 18): Gwinnett at Pawtucket, 6:15 p.m. Eastern. RHP Patrick Weigel (NR) for the Stripers vs. RHP Teddy Stankiewicz (1-2, 3.00 ERA) for the Red Sox. Radio Broadcast: 6:00 p.m. on 97.7 and 93.5 FM "The Other Side of the River."