Five-run third inning dooms Birds in seventh-straight loss

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (May 1, 2019) - The Myrtle Beach Pelicans collected just one hit after the second inning as the offense sputtered in an 8-3 loss to the Down East Wood Ducks on Wednesday night at TicketReturn.com Field at Pelicans Ballpark. 

For the second time in the series, the Wood Ducks scored in the top of the first inning. Leody Taveras tripled and scored on an RBI single from Anderson Tejeda, who also scored later in the inning to make it 2-0 Woodies. 
Myrtle Beach came right back in the bottom of the first and scored a pair of runs to tie the game. With two outs in the inning, Jimmy Herron singled to bring in Carlos Sepulveda and Grant Fennell and knot the game up at two. 
The Birds took the lead in the third inning when Kevonte Mitchell scored on a double play to give the Pelicans a 3-2 lead.
Down East did not take long to retake the lead for good. In the top of the third inning, the Woodies sent nine men to the plate and scored five runs off of Pelicans' starter Erling Moreno (1-4) to take a 7-3 advantage. 
After a pair of RBI singles from Ryan Dorow and Diosbel Arias gave the Woodies a 4-3 lead, Julio Pablo Martinez broke the game open with a bases clearing triple down the right field line that scored three runs to make it a four-run game. 
Yonny Hernandez added to the Wood Ducks lead in the eighth inning with an RBI single that plated Yohel Pozo to make it 8-3. 
Sal Mendez (1-0) locked up the Birds in 5.2 innings of no-hit baseball out of the bullpen to earn the win for Down East. 
The fourth and final game of the series between the Woodies and the Birds is slated for 7:05 p.m. on Thursday. Paul Richan (2-1, 3.79) will start for the Pelicans, while Reid Anderson (1-0, 0.44) will go for Down East. Coverage starts at 6:50 p.m. on MiLB.tv, MyrtleBeachPelicans.com/Broadcast and the MiLB First Pitch and TuneIn Apps.
It is a Thirsty Thursday at the ballpark, presented by Celebrations Nitelife, Axelrod & Associates and Gator 107.9 FM, with $1 Bud and Bud Light drafts, $2 16 oz. cans and $2 Duplan wine from 5:30 p.m. until 8 p.m.
The 2019 season is the 21st season for the Pelicans franchise and fifth as the Class A-Advanced affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. For tickets visit MyrtleBeachPelicans.com/tickets, call (843) 918-6000, or visit the Pelicans Box Office.
ABOUT THE PELICANS: The Myrtle Beach Pelicans are the Class A-Advanced affiliate of the Chicago Cubs and play their home games at TicketReturn.Com Field at Pelicans Ballpark in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Since being acquired by a group led by Chuck Greenberg during the 2006 season, the Pelicans have repeatedly set team attendance records and become known as one of Minor League Baseball's most innovative and creative franchises. The team and its employees have been dedicated to making a difference in the Myrtle Beach community, specifically giving back over $2 million in donations, fundraising proceeds, in-kind services and community service since launching the Pelicans Play It Forward Community Initiative in 2013. TicketReturn.Com Field at Pelicans Ballpark has ranked in the top eight in all of Minor League Baseball by Stadium Journey in six of the last seven seasons. The same publication also placed the Pelicans in the Top 100 Stadium Experiences and the best in the Carolina League for six of the past seven seasons. In June 2017, the Pelicans won the 2017 TripAdvisor.com Certificate of Excellence award. On the field, the team has won four Mills Cup Championships, including claims to back-to-back titles in 1999 and 2000, and again in 2015 and 2016. The Pelicans have made 11 postseason appearances behind 13 half-season Southern Division championships, including the first half of the 2015 season, second half of 2016 and first half of 2017. For more information on the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, please contact the Pelicans at (843) 918-6000 or email [email protected].