Ninth inning rally falls short in 4-3 loss to Lehigh Valley

Papillion, Neb. – The Omaha Storm Chasers (28-29) fall below .500 for the first time since May 19 after a 4-3 loss to the Lehigh Valley IronPigs (34-25).

Lehigh Valley put up a run in the first, using a pair of doubles to take a 1-0 lead.

Omaha recorded their first hit of the game on a double from RF Nate Eaton in the bottom of the third with one out but a sharp lineout and a popup on the infield stranded Eaton at second and ended the Chasers scoring opportunity.

DH Vinnie Pasquantino decided his 17th homer of the season should come on Salute to Corn Night, sending the ball out of the park at 110 mph to tie the score at 1-1 through four innings of play.

The IronPigs responded with a two-run homer in the top of the fifth to retake the lead.

RHP Carlos Hernández (Loss, 1-2) went 5.0 innings in the start, allowing three earned runs with two strikeouts.

Lehigh Valley hit their second home run of the night in the top of the sixth to open a 4-1 lead.

Pasquantino hit a ground-rule double over the wall in left field to put a runner in scoring position with nobody out in the seventh. C Freddy Fermin hit an RBI single into center field with Pasquantino beating the throw home to cut into the IronPigs lead. A flyout and a double play ended the rally quickly, with the Storm Chasers trailing 4-2.

LHP Josh Dye came in to pitch the ninth and allowed a pair of baserunners with one out. A 5-3 double play stopped the IronPigs in their tracks and brought up Omaha’s two, three, and four hitters in the bottom of the ninth.

The Storm Chasers put a pair of runners on to start the ninth when 1B Nick Pratto was hit by a pitch and LF Brewer Hicklen drew a walk. A double play groundout put Hicklen at third, but Fermin put a hit into centerfield to cut the IronPigs lead in half.

Omaha’s rally came up short as Lehigh Valley took game five 4-3.

Sunday’s series finale is Bellevue Community Night. First pitch is scheduled for 5:05 p.m. with coverage beginning at 4:45 with the Sarpy County Tourism Pregame Show on 1180 the Zone. Tomorrow is also Family Funday presented by Nebraska Medicine. Kids can run the bases and play catch on the field tomorrow as a part of Family Funday.

The Chasers head to Des Moines, Iowa next week for a six-game set with the I-Cubs.

The full 2022 schedule can be found here and single-game tickets are now available here.

For more tickets and more information, please visit omahastormchasers.com, call the Werner Park Ticket office at (402) 738-5100, and follow the team on social media. You can follow the team on Twitter @omastormchasers, on Instagram @omahastormchasers, and “like” the team on Facebook at facebook.com/omahastormchasers.