Bandits Hold Dragons to Three Hits in 3-2 Win

The Quad Cities River Bandits took the lead for the first time in the sixth inning and used solid pitching from the bullpen to prevail 3-2 against the Dayton Dragons on Wednesday night at Fifth Third Field. Enoli Paredes, Bryan Abreu, and Chad Donato combined to limit the Dragons to just three hits in the contest.
Dayton scored first, getting on the board in the very first inning. Jose Garcia reached on an infield single to lead off the inning. He moved to third on another single by Lorenzo Cedrola. A double steal moved both runners into scoring position with no outs. After a strikeout of Jeter, the Bandits brought the infield in. Andy Sugilio chopped a bouncer to second baseman David Hensley who was preparing to throw home when he lost his grip and dropped the ball, allowing Garcia to score and the Dragons to take a 1-0 lead.
The Bandits pulled even in the fourth inning with back-to-back hits. Ruben Castro opened the stanza with a groundball single through the left side. Hensley evened the score with a double down the right field line that scored Castro all the way from first base.

The Dragons again jumped ahead with a run in the bottom of the fourth. J.D. Williams reached on an error with one out in the frame. He would then go first-to-third on a single into right field by Alejo Lopez. Raul Wallace took advantage by lifting a sacrifice fly into center field that allowed Williams to score, giving Dayton a 2-1 advantage.
In the top of the sixth inning, the Bandits began their comeback with a walk drawn by Hensley. Colton Shaver also reached base with a single and another base hit from Chandler Taylor loaded the bases. A wild pitch uncorked by Miguel Aquilar allowed Hensley to score the tying run and the other runners to each advance 90 feet. Logan Mattix then put the Bandits on top for good with his sacrifice fly to center field, scoring Shaver.
Paredes worked the first 4.2 innings and allowed two runs, one earned, on three hits while striking out eight. Abreu picked up the win in his River Bandits debut by pitching 1.1 clean innings. Donato earned the save by throwing the final 3.0 innings without giving up a hit. He walked one and struck out three.
The River Bandits concluded the night with eight hits. Taylor led the way with three, with Castro and Taylor each adding a pair.
The River Bandits (10-9, 50-39) will continue the series at Fifth Third Field against the Dragons (9-11, 40-48) on Thursday night at 6:00 p.m. RHP Peter Solomon (6-1, 2.38) will start for the River Bandits against Dayton RHP Austin Orewiler (3-2, 3.86).
All River Bandits games are broadcast on 1170 K-BOB and TuneIn Radio. Home games are also available with video on MiLB.TV.