Big innings push Louisville past Mud Hens

LOUISVILLE — A three-run first inning and four-run fifth aided the Louisville Bats in a 9-3 win over the Toledo Mud Hens on Saturday night at Louisville Slugger Field.

With the victory the Bats took the series, winning four of the first five games. Toledo and Louisville will complete the six-game set at 1:05 p.m. Sunday.

In the home half of the first, the Bats loaded the bases with one out. They pushed a run across on Peyton Burdick’s groundout that scored Livan Soto.

Following Burdick, Michael Trautwein tripled to right field bringing home Rece Hinds and P.J. Higgins for a 3-0 lead. The Bats made it a four-run cushion in the fourth on Blake Dunn’s solo home run.

Toledo’s Anthony Bemboom found the seats to get the Hens on the board in the top of the fourth, making it 4-1. They then trimmed the deficit in half in the fifth as Akil Baddoo walked, stole second and third, and scored on Justyn-Henry Malloy’s flyout to center.

The Bats, however, put it to bed by scoring four runs on five hits in the bottom of the inning. Trautwein’s RBI single, Levi Jordan’s two-run double, and a Hernan Perez sacrifice fly that scored Trautwein got it to an 8-2 advantage for the home team.

A homer by Hinds in the bottom of the sixth and an RBI double by Malloy for Toledo in the top of the seventh closed the scoring. Malloy drove in two of the Hens’ three runs.

Louisville’s Yosver Zulueta, who relieved starter Brandon Leibrandt to get the final out of the fifth, earned the win on the mound for the Bats.

Toledo starter Lael Lockhart took the loss. He allowed eight runs — all earned — on eight hits with four strikeouts over 4⅓ innings.