LINCOLN, Nebraska – C Luke Roskam hit his 11th homer of the season, but the ‘Dogs allowed four unanswered runs in a 4-2 loss to the Sioux City Explorers at MercyOne Field on Thursday night.
Roskam opened the scoring with a leadoff homer in the 4th inning, and 2B Nate Samson later singled in 3B Will Kengor to give Lincoln (29-29) a 2-0 lead in the 4th.
The Explorers (32-28) answered with two runs in the 5th. LF Matt Lloyd made it 2-1 with a sacrifice fly before 1B Tyler Rando tied the game with an RBI single.
Sioux City took the lead for good in the 6th inning. C Wilfredo Gimenez scored from second base on an error from 1B Yanio Perez on a grounder from RF Scott Ota, and Ota later scored on an RBI double from Lloyd.
Kengor and Samson led the ‘Dogs with two hits each, while newcomer LF Luis Roman went 1-for-3 with a walk in his debut. The ‘Dogs had nine hits total and at least one from seven of the nine starters, but Lincoln had just one extra-base hit and a five-game winning streak against Sioux City came to an end.
RHP Josh Roeder tossed a quality start, allowing four runs – three earned – over six innings with no walks and three strikeouts. LHP David Zoz pitched both innings in relief, going six up, six down with one strikeout.
The ‘Dogs are now 7-3 against Sioux City this year.
The series continues Friday night. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. and pregame coverage begins at 6:35 on KFOR FM 101.5/1240 AM.
The Saltdogs are back in 2023! Single-game tickets for all games are on sale now. Reserve your seats now by calling 402-474-BALL (2255) or order on-line at Saltdogs.com.