Squirrels drop homestand opener, 5-2

RICHMOND, Va. – The Richmond Flying Squirrels returned home to CarMax Park and lost to the Erie SeaWolves, 5-2, on Friday night.

The Flying Squirrels (53-33, 10-8 second half) had a trio of Double-A debuts spoiled by the SeaWolves (51-36, 15-4) to open their nine-game homestand.

Erie loaded the bases against Richmond starter Yunior Marte (Loss, 0-3) in the top of the first inning to set up a sacrifice fly by Andrew Jenkins for a 1-0 lead.

Marte stranded two in the inning and retired 13 consecutive batters until catcher’s interference ended the streak in the fifth. Marte retired the next batter with a groundout to finish his day with one run allowed over five innings with six strikeouts.

In the top of the sixth, Erie scored a run on a wild pitch to extend the lead to 2-0.

Gavin Kilen's got a three-bagger for his first hit in Double-A! 👏 pic.twitter.com/E5WV8mE0zZ

— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) July 18, 2026

Making his Double-A debut, Gavin Kilen tripled to lead of the bottom of the sixth and later scored on a groundout by Sabin Ceballos to close the score to 2-1. Kilen finished the night 1-for-3 with a walk.

E.J. Exposito hit a solo homer in the seventh to push the Erie lead to 3-1.

In the bottom of the seventh, Jean Carlos Sio led off with a single and later scored on a groundout by Diego Velasquez to trim the deficit to 3-2.

The SeaWolves opened a 5-2 lead in the top of the ninth with a two-out, two-run single by Seth Stephenson. Trevin Michael (Save, 4) worked around a two-out walk in the ninth to end the game.

That'll do the job 😅

Dakota Jordan's first Double-A hit stays juuuust fair! pic.twitter.com/HM5c115SVk

— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) July 18, 2026

Dakota Jordan went 1-for-3 with an infield single and a walk in his first Double-A game. Trevor Cohen, also called up from High-A Eugene on Friday, went hitless.

The series continues on Saturday night at CarMax Park. Left-hander Charlie McDaniel (2-1, 5.40) will start for Richmond opposed by Erie right-hander Hayden Minton (0-0, 3.07). First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.

Saturday is Richmond 34 Legacy Night presented by Markel. The Flying Squirrels will honor the legacy of the Richmond 34 and the new monument at CarMax Park. The team will wear special Richmond 34 jerseys that are being auctioned at FlyingSquirrelsAuctions.com with proceeds benefiting the Richmond 34 Legacy Scholarship Fund. In-Your-Face Fireworks presented by Chick-fil-A follow the game.

Tickets are available online at SquirrelsBaseball.com/Tickets, by phone at 804-359-FUNN (3866) or in person at the CarMax Park ticket office. Ticket packages for the Flying Squirrels’ home playoff games at CarMax Park on sale now at SquirrelsBaseball.com/Playoffs.