JetHawks break out of slump

Brendan Kingman was 3-for-4 with two doubles and three runs scored as Lancaster snapped its four-game losing streak

After starting the longest road trip of the year 1-4, including losing the last four games, Lancaster put the bats together Wednesday night to beat the Lake Elsinore Storm 10-7 in front of 2,405 fans at The Diamond.

``Going out on the road trip, we wanted to take two from San Jose and two against Lake Elsinore,'' said Lancaster's Brendan Kingman, who was 3-for-4 with two doubles and three runs scored. ``But we obviously didn't get that. We'll still take the win here and we just have to keep going out and playing good baseball. We'll be all right.''

The JetHawks collected six extra-base hits, including home runs by Anton French and Chris Dean. The homers were French's fourth and Dean's second.

After suffering through an offensive slump that had them batting 50 points below their regular season average, the JetHawks didn't mind receiving the instant offense from different guys.

``Every player at this level is capable of hitting for power,'' Kingman said. ``Everybody chips in their own way.''

With the score tied at 7, Lancaster took a two-run lead in the top of the seventh inning when Francisco Santiestaban doubled in Jason Regan and Fernando Espinoso hit a sacrifice fly to score Kingman, making it 9-7.

In the top of the eighth, Dean added some insurance with a solo home run on the first pitch of the inning to close the door on the Storm.

The victory is something Lancaster needed before heading north again for the final seven games of the road trip. After starting the trek in San Jose, the team came to Lake Elsinore for three games. The JetHawks head to Modesto today for four games, before having a much-needed day off and finishing the stretch with a threegame set in Stockton.

While the hitting came through for Lancaster, the JetHawks' pitching still seemed suspect.

Lancaster starter Jason Bond was shaky, giving up seven runs on eight hits. He struck out six and walked three while making 88 pitches.

Kevin Gryboski picked up the win with 1 2/3 innings of relief. Gryboski surrendered two hits, including a single that scored two runs that were charged to Bond, and walked one.

Allen Westfall pitched a strong game, giving up just one hit in three innings to earn the save.

Lancaster picked the hottest day of the year to take the heat off the road trip. With the temperature reported at 112 degrees, the JetHawks' offense turned itself around with timely hitting.

Lancaster broke through in the second inning after Kingman led off with a double. After Kingman reached third on a wild pitch, Luis Tinoco's run-scoring single made it 1-0. Tinoco later scored on a fielder's choice to put the JetHawks ahead 2-0.

But the Storm didn't allow Lancaster to pull away. Shawn Wooten hit a full-count fastball over the left-field wall in the bottom half of the inning to close the lead to 2-1.

With the 100-plus degree temperatures carrying the ball out of the park, French got into the act with a solo home run to lead off the third inning and increase the Lancaster advantage to 3-1.

Lake Elsinore bounced back to take the lead in the third with a four-run inning, fueled by Cesar Geronimo's one-out home run. The Storm followed with two hits and two walks for another run and loaded the bases for Jeff Guiel.

Guiel promptly doubled in two runs - and it could have been three. Ramon Vazquez's relay throw from Tinoco cut down Kevin Ham at the plate to end the inning with the Storm leading 5-3.

In the fourth, the JetHawks continued to take advantage of scoring opportunities. After Kingman led off with a double, Vazquez brought him in with a two-out single to make it 5-4. But Vazquez was caught trying to stretch a single into a double.

Lancaster regained the lead in the fifth inning. Espinoso led off with a single. Storm starter Joseph Gangemi then walked French and was taken out of the game after making only 46 pitches.

With runners on second and third, Dean plated Espinoso and French with a triple to give Lancaster a 6-5 lead. Dean later scored on a fielder's choice.

In those five innings, Gangemi gave up six earned runs on seven hits, while walking one and striking out one.

Lake Elsinore came back in the bottom of the fifth. Guiel collected his third and fourth RBI of the game with a single to center off Gryboski to pull the Storm even.