Quakes Lose Another Late Lead to Storm

Rancho Cucamonga, CA - The Quakes got three home runs from their offense and a great start from Chris Anderson, but Lake Elsinore came back from a late four-run deficit to down Rancho 8-4 in 10 innings on Sunday evening at LoanMart Field. It was Rancho's fourth extra-inning game in five nights.

Rancho Cucamonga (29-27, 61-65) jumped out to an early lead, scoring three times in the first inning against Lake Elsinore's Rafael De Paula. With two outs and the bases empty, Jeremy Rathjen and Chris Jacobs hit back-to-back home runs. Two batters later, Kyle Farmer scored Pratt Maynard with a triple to put Rancho up 3-0.

Rathjen's home run was his 16th of the season and his 12th since the All-Star Break. He has three long balls in his last six games. Jacobs went yard for a team-leading 22nd time this year, but the homer was his first since July 26.

The Quakes added another run in the fourth inning. With two outs, James Baldwin took De Paula deep to right field and Rancho led 4-0 at the end of four.

Chris Anderson was dominant in a season-high seven innings of work on Sunday, giving up just two runs on five hits while striking out 10 and walking one. The 10 strikeouts were a career-high for the righty. Over the last five games, Rancho has gotten 45 strikeouts and 10 walks from their starters in 31 innings.

Lake Elsinore (28-28, 68-58) finally got to Anderson in the seventh. With two on and two outs, Duanel Jones hit a two-run double to left field that cut Rancho's lead in half.

For the second time in three games, the Quakes' bullpen could not hold onto a late lead. Geoff Brown gave up three straight hits to start the eighth inning. Dan Tillman came on in relief, and Lake Elsinore would tie the game at 4-4 on a groundout from Jeremy Baltz.

Tillman (2-1, 6.75) pitched a scoreless ninth, but allowed four to score in the 10th. Benji Gonzalez and Danie Phillips hit consecutive RBI doubles, and Gabriel Quintana put the finishing touches on with a two-run shot to left field that gave the Storm an 8-4 lead.

After scoring four runs in the first four innings, Rancho's offense was kept off the board and mustered just two hits in the final six innings against the Storm bullpen. Rancho was 0-for-7 with men in scoring position.

The loss put Rancho into a first-place tie with Inland Empire. With fourteen games left to play, just three games separate all five teams in the South Division.

The four-game series between the Quakes and Storm concludes on Monday night at LoanMart Field. The newly 18-year-old Julio Urias (1-2, 2.86) starts for Rancho against righty Elliot Morris (5-6, 3.58). First pitch is at 7:05 pm and the game will be broadcast live on Fox Sports AM 1350 starting with the LoanMart Pregame Report at 6:50 pm.

It is a Social Media Monday at LoanMart Field! Follow the Quakes on Twitter, Instagram and like the team on Facebook for a chance to win prizes and behind-the-scenes experiences at LoanMart Field! Tickets are still available by calling (909) 481-5000 or online at rcquakes.com. We hope to see you at LoanMart Field very soon! Go Quakes!