The SeaWolves (3-1) battled through cold, rainy and windy conditions on Friday night at First Energy Stadium, falling to the Reading Fightin Phils 8-4.
Reading jumped ahead in the bottom of the first inning against Erie starter A.J. Ladwig. Arquimedes Gamboa led off with a double and Dalton Guthrie reached
The SeaWolves (3-1) battled through cold, rainy and windy conditions on Friday night at First Energy Stadium, falling to the Reading Fightin Phils 8-4.
Reading jumped ahead in the bottom of the first inning against Erie starter A.J. Ladwig. Arquimedes Gamboa led off with a double and Dalton Guthrie reached on a bunt single putting a pair on for Daniel Brito. Brito singled home Gamboa for a 1-0 lead. Matt Vierling walked to load the bases for Josh Stephen who lifted a fly ball to center for a sacrifice fly plating Guthrie. An error on the throw in allowed Brito to score for a 3-0 lead.
Erie got on the board in the third against Reading starter Jhordany Mezquita when Ryan Kriedler doubled and scored on a Jacob Robson knock.
The Fightins added a pair of two out runs in the third and fourth innings on a Stephen RBI single and a Luke Miller home run for a 5-1 advantage.
The SeaWolves made it a two-run game in the top of the sixth. Kerry Carpenter led off with a double. Juan Centeno followed with an opposite-field, two-run home run to make it 5-3. The home run was his first.
Reading grabbed it’s largest lead of the game in the bottom of the sixth against reliever Cale Coshow to go ahead 8-3. Madison Stokes and Nick Matera each singled. Stokes scored on a Miller sacrifice fly. Brito singled home a pair with the bases loaded to cap the Fightins scoring for the night.
The SeaWolves got one back in the seventh making it a four-run game against reliever Jonathan Hennigan. Kriedler led off and reached on an infield double on a ball that was lost in the lights. He later scored on a Carpenter groundout.
Reading reliever Jakob Hernandez (1-0) earned the win hurling two scoreless frames in relief. He allowed only one hit and struck out four.
Ladwig (0-1) in his first start since returning from Tommy John surgery took the loss. He allowed five runs, four earned, on seven hits with a walk and seven strikeouts in 4.2 innings.