Early offense carries Power to 12-10 victory

CHARLESTON, W. Va. (July 19, 2019) - West Virginia tallied six runs in the first inning and five runs in the third before holding on late in a 12-10 win over the Delmarva Shorebirds Saturday night at Appalachian Power Park.
With the Orioles' top prospect Grayson Rodriguez (7-3) on the bump, West Virginia (15-15, 52-48) teed off in the first inning with back-to-back one-out doubles from Matt Sanders and Julio Rodriguez that put the Power ahead 1-0. After a wild pitch, Julio beat the throw to the plate on a Bobby Honeyman fielder's choice that made it 2-0. A batter later, Austin Shenton creamed a no-doubter over the right-field wall and extended the lead to 4-0. Grayson Rodriguez then walked the bases loaded and was pulled from the game in what resulted in the shortest start of his professional career. Ryan Ramiz converted with two down, stroking a two-run single that thrust West Virginia out to a 6-0 lead after batting around for the sixth time this season.

The Power's six runs in the first inning tied the most they have scored in a single stanza this year (five times).
Delmarva (20-10, 68-31) immediately answered in the second with two runs off two sacrifice flies, then added another in the third on a J.C. Encarnacion single that cut the lead to 6-3. 
West Virginia found their rhythm at the plate again in the third, as Onil Pena and Mike Salvatore notched a single and a double before subsequently scoring a batter later on Charlie McConnell's two-run single. McConnell came around on a Julio RBI knock, and Honeyman extended his hitting streak to 16 games with a run-scoring base hit later in the inning that pushed the Power's lead to 11-3.
West Virginia recorded two big innings in the same game for the first time since June 30, 2018, when the Power utilized two five-run frames to thump Hagerstown 12-4 in Maryland.
However, the Shorebirds did not go away easily, as Delmarva took a chunk out of the lead with a four-run fifth inning on three hits and an error that trimmed the West Virginia advantage to four. Delmarva struck for a run in each of the next three frames on a Robert Neustrom homer in the sixth off Sal Biasi (5-3) an RBI single from Jaylen Ferguson in the seventh, and a run-scoring triple from Encarnacion in the eighth that brought the Shorebirds back within a run at 11-10.
In the eighth, West Virginia added a key insurance run on a Julio RBI groundout that plated Nick Rodriguez, who singled his way aboard earlier in the inning. Dayeison Arias (S,8) who entered in the eighth, labored past a throwing error from Honeyman in the top of the ninth to close out the victory and pick up his eighth save in nine opportunities.
The Power concludes their four-game series against the Delmarva Shorebirds Sunday afternoon at Appalachian Power Park, with first pitch set for 2:05 p.m. RHP Ryne Inman (7-6, 4.59 ERA) toes the slab for West Virginia, while Delmarva will send LHP Ryan Wilson (5-3, 2.80 ERA) to the bump. Pregame coverage begins at 1:45 p.m. on The Jock 1300 and 1340 AM, as well as online at wvpower.com and via the TuneIn Radio App and MiLB First Pitch App.
It is another Kidz Sunday Fun Day at Appalachian Power Park, where kids 12 and younger can run the bases after the final out, courtesy of the SMART529 College Savings Program, as well as play catch in the outfield before the game. Select Power players will also be available for postgame autographs. Also, members of the Sheetz Power Kidz Club can get free tickets courtesy of Sheetz. Additionally, Kidz Club members can participate in an ice cream social and cool off in the sprinklers at the third base picnic garden by showing their Kidz Club card at the Power Box Office. All Kidz Sunday Fundays are presented by Shawnee Park Foundation. For tickets and more information, call the Power at 304-344-2287 or visit www.wvpower.com.