ST. PAUL, Minn. — The St. Paul Saints (54-16) took advantage of a leaky Lincoln defense, downing the Saltdogs (26-43) 3-0 in a rain-shortened five innings at CHS Field Thursday night.
Angelo Songco reached on double to begin the second inning, thanks to a communication breakdown in left center field. Two batters later, Joey Paciorek singled him home to make it 1-0 Saints.
St. Paul tallied an unearned run in the fourth before Vinny DiFazio singled in the game’s final run under a heavy downpour in the fifth.
Dustin Crenshaw (12-1) pitched five innings, allowing two hits to earn his 12th win, which matches St. Paul’s franchise record. Casey Collins (1-1) pitched 4 1/3 innings, allowing three runs – one earned – on five hits while walking three and fanning one to suffer the tough-luck loss.
Lincoln looks to avoid the series sweep Friday night at 7:05 p.m. RHP Jesse Smith is expected to square off against LHP Kramer Sneed. Radio coverage begins at 6:35 p.m. on KFOR FM 103.3/1240 AM.