Storm Win Opener 8-7 Against Visalia Rawhide

The Storm won their first game of the 2021 season against the Visalia Rawhide last night by a final score of 8-7! It was a re-match of the 2019 California League Championship

The lead changed four times throughout the game. Euribiel Angeles, Matthew Acosta, and Gilberto Vizcarra all finished with 2 hits, and Brandon Valenzuela hit a 3-run blast over the right-field wall to give The Storm the first lead of the season with a 4-2 advantage.

The Storm led by three in the bottom of the fourth until Ronny Simon tied it up with a 3-run homer of his own. The next inning, Chen gave the Rawhide the 6-5 lead with an RBI base hit up the middle.

Continuing the back-and-forth trend, the Storm tied it at six when Matthew Acosta singled on a bunt with Gilberto Vizcarra on third. In the seventh, Jorge Barrosa drilled an inside pitch over the right field wall to give the Rawhide the lead for the final time.

In the eighth, Lake Elsinore found themselves down by one. Matthew Acosta picked up his third RBI of the night when he hit the fourth home run of the game. Acosta's 2-run home run gave the Storm the 8-7 lead.

Visalia threatened in the bottom of the eighth, but stranded two runners in scoring position. The Storm defeated the Rawhide 8-7. Visalia Harrison Francis took the loss and blown save. Lake Elsinore's Michell Miliano earned his first win of the season and Jose Garcia earned the save.

Rawhide host the Storm for game 2 of the 6 game series tomorrow at 6 pm.

-Written by Justin Jett