River Cats Fall to Chihuahuas in 13 Innings

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. - A last-minute rally in the bottom of the 13th wasn't enough for the River Cats as they fell 7-6 to the El Paso Chihuahuas Friday night at Raley Field. Kevin Correia made his 2015 Triple-A debut and Adam Duvall hit his third home run in three nights in the loss.

Correia had been pitching in extended Spring Training for San Francisco and was recently transferred to the Triple-A club. After a rocky start to the night, the veteran right-hander settled into a grove and ultimately tossed a quality start, throwing 6 solid innings and giving up 2 runs on 4 hits and 2 walks while striking out 4.

Duvall hit his third home run in as many days, this one coming with the River Cats down a run in the bottom of the ninth. The home run - his seventh of the season - tied the game at four and sent the contest into extra innings. Duvall was 2-for-6 with 2 RBI and a run scored.

Sacramento outhit the Chihuahuas in the loss 14-10, but struggled in key situations to take advantage of their many baserunners. Overall, the River Cats were just 4-for-18 with runners in scoring position. They left 14 men on base, including 4 on third base.

El Paso got on the board first again for the second night in a row. Chihuahuas leadoff hitter Abraham Almonte hit the first pitch of the game out onto the grass berm behind the bullpens in right. El Paso added another in the second when Austin Hedges scored on Ramiro Pena's sacrifice fly. Two Chihuahua doubles and two River Cats errors gave El Paso two more runs in the seventh.

Sacramento scored their first run in the fourth on an RBI-double from Duvall. Skyler Stromsmoe's 2-RBI single in the 8th made the score 4-3 before Duvall's ninth inning home run tied the game at 4.

In extras, both teams traded zeros until the 13th. Hunter Strickland surrendered four straight hits, the last of which was a bases-clearing double to Jake Goebbert, giving El Paso a 7-4 lead. The River Cats mounted a comeback in their half of the inning, loading the bases on two singles and a walk. Catcher Ben Turner, in his first ever Triple-A at bat, lined a 2-run single to left, pulling the River Cats to within one. With Ronny Cedeno representing the tying run on third, Duvall flew out to shallow left field and Jarrett Parker struck out looking to end the game.

With another Fresno loss, Sacramento remains in sole possession of first place in the Pacific Northern. Game three of this four game series is set for Saturday night, with first pitch at 7:05 p.m. PDT. It'll be lefty on lefty as Sacramento's Braulio Lara (0-3, 7.88) takes on El Paso's Robbie Erlin (3-1, 4.50).

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The Sacramento River Cats are the Triple-A affiliate of the 2014 World Champion San Francisco Giants. The team plays at Raley Field in West Sacramento, consistently voted one of the top ballparks in America. River Cats Season Tickets, Mini-Plans, and Flex Plans can be purchased for the 2015 season by calling the River Cats Ticket Hotline at (916) 371-HITS (4487). For more information about the River Cats, visit www.rivercats.com. For information on other events at Raley Field, visit www.raleyfield.com.