Saints give up two big innings, lose 8-6 to Columbus

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Nolan Jones' go-ahead three-run homer in a four-run fifth inning lifted the Class AAA Columbus Clippers to an 8-6 victory over the Saints on Sunday at Huntington Park.

Mark Contreras scored the Saints' first run in the opening inning and later hit a two-run single during a rally that gave St. Paul a 4-3 lead in the third. The Clippers made two errors in the inning, and Contreras' single was the only ball hit out of the infield.

Jones' blast off Ian Gibault, his fourth home run of the season, made it 7-4 for Columbus, and the Saints pulled within a run on Damek Tomscha's two-run homer in the sixth following a walk to Contreras.

The Clippers added an insurance run in the eighth when Gabriel Arias led off with a bloop double to right-center. Trenton Brooks' one-out infield hit put runners at the corners against Juan Minaya. An RBI single by Connor Marabell scored Arias.

NEWS SERVICES