Late homer lifts Richmond past Somerset

7/16/21 BOX SCORE | BUY TICKETS HERE

Richmond, Virginia - The Somerset Patriots (40-23) let a pair of leads get away in a 6-4 loss Friday night to the Richmond Flying Squirrels (35-29) at the Diamond.

Somerset held leads of 2-0 and 3-1, but the Flying Squirrels were able to twice rally late to even up the current six-game series at two games a side.

The Patriots jumped in front on back-to-back home runs from Brandon Lockridge (2) and Michael Beltre (11) in the top of the fourth. The Flying Squirrels got a run back on a Brandon Martorano RBI single in the fifth, but Somerset extended its lead back out to 3-1 the next half inning on an run-scoring infield single from Lockridge.

BACK-2⃣-BACK JACKS!@Brandon_Lock2 and @beltre_michael3 with a pair of two-out homers in the fourth! pic.twitter.com/eRDBXlZ7MR

— Somerset Patriots (@SOMPatriots) July 16, 2021

Lockridge finished his night 3-for-4 with a home run and two RBI.

Luis Medina faced the minimum through his first four innings and had only allowed two hits over his first five frames. But the right-hander ran into trouble in the sixth, walking the first three batters. All three walks came around to score in the inning, which put the Flying Squirrels ahead 4-3.

Somerset once again responded the next half inning to tie the game. This time it was an RBI double from Oswald Peraza - his second double of the night - to level the score at 4-4.

Richmond regained the lead in the bottom of the eighth on a two-run home run from Vince Fernandez (12) that capped the scoring for the night.

Joey Marciano (W, 3-1) worked 1.1 scoreless innings of relief to earn the win. Nick Green (L, 1-2) allowed two runs over three innings of relief to take the loss.

The Patriots and Flying Squirrels continue their six-game set Saturday night. First pitch at The Diamond is set for 6:05 p.m.

About the Somerset Patriots

The Somerset Patriots are the New York Yankees Double-A Affiliate and develop today’s top minor league talent into the pinstriped superstars of tomorrow for MLB’s winningest team. The Patriots compete in the Double-A Northeast League and play their home games at TD Bank Ballpark in Bridgewater, NJ, where fans of all ages and levels of baseball fandom get to enjoy the unique experience that is minor league baseball.

To learn more, visit: _www.somersetpatriots.com_.