SALEM, Va. – The Salem Red Sox ended a five-game losing streak with a dramatic 9-7 victory over the Lynchburg Hillcats on Wednesday afternoon at Carilion Clinic Field. The back-and-forth contest featured multiple lead changes and clutch performances, providing an exciting spectacle for the crowd gathered for the annual Education Day game.
The game began with Salem taking an early lead, but Lynchburg responded in the fifth inning with three runs to go ahead 5-4. Salem quickly answered in the bottom half, tying the game on a sacrifice fly by Starlyn Nunez. The Hillcats regained the lead in the seventh inning, capitalizing on a two-run bloop single by Jeffrey Mercedes that was affected by a gust of wind, making it 7-5 in favor of Lynchburg.
In the bottom of the seventh, Salem mounted a rally. Frederik Jimenez reached base and advanced to third on a wild pitch. He then scored on another wild pitch, narrowing the deficit. Later in the inning, Jimenez hit an infield single, allowing Nunez to score from second base, giving Salem an 8-7 lead. ​
Kleyver Salazar provided an insurance run in the eighth with an RBI single, extending Salem’s lead to 9-7.Reliever Matt McShane delivered a strong performance, pitching three innings of one-hit, scoreless baseball with four strikeouts, earning his second win of the season.Nicolas De La Cruz secured the save by recording the final two outs in the ninth inning.