LINCOLN, Nebraska – Justin Byrd hit two homers and drove in four, and the Saltdogs opened the series with an 11-6 win over the Kane County Cougars in front of 6,686 fans at Haymarket Park on Friday night.
Byrd had Lincoln’s (11-10) first multi-homer game of the year, and hit a solo shot to open the scoring in the 3rd before a three-run shot made it 7-0 in the 6th.
Kane County (9-12) scored six times on eight hits in the 7th – including a two-run double from Anfernee Seymour and a two-run single from Jeffrey Baez.
The ‘Dogs answered with Edgar Corcino’s sacrifice fly in the bottom-half, and Lincoln added three more with two sacrifice flies and David Vidal’s RBI single in the 8th.
The ‘Dogs tied a season with 11 runs and won a third consecutive game against Kane County. Lincoln had six 1-2-3 innings and walked only one batter all night.
John Richy allowed four runs over 6.1 innings, while Carter Hope tossed 1.1 scoreless innings before James Pugliese went 1-2-3 in the 9th.
Byrd reached all five times, while Vidal also reached five times with three walks and a pair of RBI singles. Skyler Weber walked twice with a single, and Curt Smith hit a pair of doubles.
The ‘Dogs and Cougars will continue the series on Saturday night. First pitch time is scheduled for 7:05 p.m., and pregame coverage begins at 6:35 on ESPN Lincoln 101.5 FM/1480 AM.
The Saltdogs are celebrating their 20th season at Haymarket Park this season! All ticket and promotional information can be viewed at saltdogs.com.