Matt Helm went three-for-four, including a solo home run in the top of the tenth to lift the South Bend Silver Hawks to a 2-1 victory over the Lake County Captains on Friday night.
The Silver Hawks won their first ever game at Classic Park in dramatic fashion. After trailing most of the game, Helm’s blast over the bleachers in left field off of Lake County reliever Nick Sarianides (LP, 3-1) gave the Silver Hawks their third extra inning win of the season. It was Helm’s first home run of the season and his second RBI, and it capped a 3-for-4 night at the plate that included the homer, two singles, and scoring both runs for the Hawks.
Entering play on Friday, South Bend starter Mike Belfiore had not allowed a run in the first inning or thrown a wild pitch all season. He did both Friday night when Casey Frawley tripled and scored on a wild pitch for a very early 1-0 Captains lead. Belfiore actually allowed two hits, a walk, and threw two wild pitches in the inning, but escaped with only one run being scored.
Belfiore settled down considerably after that, turning in a solid outing for South Bend. The left-hander went 6.0 innings, recording a season high eight strikeouts, while allowing just four hits and walking three. Unfortunately, Belfiore could not get any offensive support for his strong effort on the mound.
Lake County starter Clayton Cook pitched just as well, if not better. Cook went 7.0 scoreless before finally being charged with a run in the eighth. Helm had a one out single to start the rally, the team’s first hit since Helm’s single in the second, and then the Captains went to the bullpen to bring on reliever Preston Guilmet
. Narodowski bunted Helm to second and Alberto Diaz came through with a big two-out RBI double to right-center to knot the game at 1-1.
Chris Odegaard (WP, 3-0) pitched 3.0 scoreless innings in one of his best outings of the year to pick up his third victory against no defeats. Yonata Ortega (SV, 8) allowed the tying run to reach second base in the bottom of the tenth, but got Bo Greenwell to pop out to short, ending the game.
Hawk Droppings
- Helm's big night raised his season batting average by 41 points
- South Bend's #3-5 hitters each went 0-for-4
- Ortega is now tied for third in the Midwest League with his eight saves
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