Tough first inning leads to Hammerhead loss

The Hammerheads struggled to come back from a difficult 8-run first inning by the Fire Frogs, suffering a 9-3 loss Friday night at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium.
Will Stewart, who through a near-no-hitter four starts ago, had a difficult time retiring batters in the first inning. Eight straight hits and a grand slam gave the Frogs and early 8-0 lead. He allowed one more run in the second inning to make the score 9-0.
By the third inning, Stewart had begun to settle in. The lefty didn't allow another run for the remainder of his outing, retiring thirteen of his last fourteen batters and only giving Florida two more hits over the rest of his 5 2/3 innings pitched.  
The Hammerheads offense tried to combat the large early deficit. In the bottom of the fifth they gained some much needed momentum with a two-out rally. After Jose Devers reached base on hit-by-pitch, three singles by Riley Mahan, Víctor Víctor Mesa and Lazaro Alonso scored three for the Hammerheads.
Alonso, who was just a few games ago struggling at the plate, went 3-5 with a double. Mesa increased his hitting streak to nine games. Devers increased his on-base streak to 19 games, and in total the 19-year-old has made it on base 22 of his 24 games this season.
Relief pitchers Colton Hock and Elkin Alcala continued to hold-off the Fire Frogs, but it wasn't enough to overcome the tough first inning and the Hammerheads took the L.
This six-game homestand and series against Florida finishes tomorrow at 5:30 pm at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium.