By Durham Bulls communications

Durham, NC  – Jacob Lopez struck out a career-high 11 batters while Rene Pinto had three hits and two RBI as the Durham Bulls beat the Norfolk Tides 5-2 before 8,121 fans at the DBAP on Friday night.

Lopez started the game by recording the first six outs via strikeouts, finishing with his 11th on a whiff by Nick Maton in the fifth inning.  Lopez was relieved in the fifth by Joe Record (W, 1-0), who struck out two Tides batters with two runners on to preserve a 2-0 lead.

Durham (5-6) went ahead of Tucker Davidson (L, 2-3) in the fifth by scoring a pair of runs. Ronny Simon opened the frame with a single, advanced on a wild pitch, then scored on the first of Pinto’s three hits.  After a walk, Jake Mangum doubled into the left field corner to score Pinto for a 2-0 lead.

In the fifth, Simon reached on an infield hit, stole second base before Pinto knocked him in again on a single to left.

With the Bulls ahead of Norfolk (4-6) 3-1 in the seventh, the game was delayed by 29 minutes due to rain. Following the delay, Durham scored twice in the eight on a base hit by Bob Seymour to put Durham ahead 5-1.

Tyler Zuber (S, 4) threw the final two innings to record his fourth save.

The Bulls lead the series 3-2 and conclude their mini homestand on Saturday night. Mason Montgomery (0-5, 6.08) is slated to start against Chayce McDermott (2-5, 3.79) at 6:35 PM ET.

Tickets for all 2024 Durham Bulls home contests are available and can be purchased online at DurhamBulls.com.

Source: wralsportsfan.com