Three homers, pitching lead Birds to second-straight win

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (April 18, 2019) - The Myrtle Beach Pelicans bats exploded for nine runs on 13 hits in a 9-0 win over the Lynchburg Hillcats on Thursday night from Calvin Falwell Field at City Stadium.

The Pelicans (4-11) wasted no time against Lynchburg (9-6) starter Juan Hillman (1-2) in the opening game of the four-game series, as the Birds tagged him for five runs on three hits in the opening frame.
Myrtle Beach loaded the bases in the first and scored their first run of the game on a sacrifice fly from Cam Balego to make it 1-0. 
With runners on first and second and two outs, Tyler Payne scorched a ball to third that hopped by Nolan Jones for an error and allowed Miguel Amaya to score from second to extend the lead to 2-0.
The big blow came one batter later when Kevonte Mitchell made it 5-0 with a three-run homer to left, his third of season. 
Zach Davis used his speed to help Myrtle Beach extend their lead to 6-0 in the second inning when he tripled to lead off the inning and scored on a single from Carlos Sepulveda . 
Oscar De La Cruz was credited for the win in his first rehab start of the season for the Pelicans. The right hander struck out three and walked one across five innings of shutout baseball.
Myrtle Beach added to the lead in the fifth inning when Payne launched his first home run of the season, a solo shot, to make it 7-0 Birds. 
Cam Balego followed the trend in the seventh inning with a homer to left to lengthen the lead to 8-0 and gave Myrtle Beach its first three-homer game of the season. 
The Pelicans scored their final run of the night in the eighth inning after Jhonny Bethencourt doubled to lead off the inning and later scored on another Sepulveda single to cap off the 9-0 win for the Birds.
Paul Richan (1-0, 1.04) will take the mound for the Pelicans in the second game of the series against Justin Garza (1-2, 8.10) for the Hillcats at 6 p.m. on Friday night at Calvin Falwell Field at City Stadium in Lynchburg, Va. 
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].