Captains Velazquez Belts Two Home Runs as Lake County Tops Dragons 7-5

Lake County 7, Dragons 5

Click here for the box score

Lake County (R-H-E): 7-13-2; Dayton (R-H-E): 5-9-0

Win: Izaac Martinez (4-1); Loss: Will Cannon (1-3); Save: None

HR: Dayton: None HR: Lake County: Ralphy Velazquez, 2 (16^th, 0 on base in sixth inning; 17^th, 0 on base in ninth inning).

Dayton, Ohio—Lake County’s Ralphy Velazquez belted two home runs to lead the Captains to a 7-5 victory over the Dayton Dragons on Sunday afternoon. The Captains won four of the six games in the series in Dayton.

A crowd of 7,759 was in attendance at Day Air Ballpark in the heart of the Water Street District.

Game Summary:

The Dragons took a 2-0 lead in the first inning after consecutive singles by Carlos Jorge and Anthony Stephan, a pair of stolen bases, and a two-out error that allowed both runners to score.

The Captains battled back with two runs fourth inning to tie the game as Juan Benjamin delivered a two-out, two-run double to make it 2-2.

Dragons starting pitcher Nick Sando worked the first five innings, allowing four hits and two runs with two walks and one strikeout, leaving the game with the score tied 2-2.

The Captains took the lead in the sixth on a solo home run by Ralphy Velazquez against Dragons pitcher Will Cannon to make it 3-2. Meanwhile, the Dragons had scoring chances in nearly every inning, but they could not take advantage. The Dragons had runners in scoring position in the third, fifth, and sixth innings but did not score.

Lake County added three runs in the eighth against Dragons reliever Jonah Hurney to make it 6-2, and Velazquez connected on his second home run of the game in the top of the ninth to put Lake County in front, 7-2.

The Dragons pushed across three runs in the bottom of the ninth against veteran Tyler Naquin, making the conversion to pitcher after a long major league career as an outfielder. Jorge had an RBI single in the ninth and Naquin issued three walks as the Dragons brought the tying run to the plate with one out before Naquin worked out of further trouble.

Dayton finished the day with nine hits. Jorge went 3 for 5 with a run scored and an RBI. Anthony Stephan had two hits.

Up Next: The Dragons (13-26, 34-70) do not play on Monday. They will open a six-game road series in Lansing, Michigan against the Lansing Lugnuts (17-25, 53-55) on Tuesday night at 7:05 pm. Johnathan Harmon (0-0, 1.93) will start for the Dragons.

The next home game at Day Air Ballpark in the heart of the Water Street District is Tuesday, August 19 against the Peoria Chiefs (St. Louis Cardinals affiliate) at 7:05 pm in the start to a six-game series. For tickets, call (937) 228-2287 or go to daytondragons.com/tickets.

On the Air: All Dragons home and road games are broadcast on radio on FOX Sports 980 AM WONE. Games can be heard on smart phones, iPads, and other mobile devices via the free Dragons Mobile App, or on a computer at wone.com. Games are also available on HD Radio on 104.7 WTUI HD 2.