Storm Drop Second in a Row, Allow Four Runs in Final Three Innings to Fall 8-4
CalL Lake Elsinore Storm

Storm Drop Second in a Row, Allow Four Runs in Final Three Innings to Fall 8-4

Published on July 5, 2026 under California League (CalL)
Lake Elsinore Storm News Release


LAKE ELSINORE, CA - Trying to bounce back from a disappointing 11-6 loss last night, Lake Elsinore did itself no favors after allowing four early runs. While the Storm evened it back up, the Stockton bats got hot at the right time and delivered an 8-4 win for the Ports in game three of six from Diamond Stadium.

Stockton was aggressive early and capitalized on two mistake pitches from Storm starter Lan-Hong Su. Breyson Guedez laced a two-run home run to right-center field to put the Ports up early. Later in the second, Daniel Bucciero ripped a double into center to score both Ramon Landaeta and Ben Newton. It was 4-0 Stockton and the Ports were rolling early.

But the tides began to change in the fourth. Lake Elsinore got its first run thanks to heads-up base-running from Jorge Quintana. The DH reached on a walk and advanced to second on a fielder's choice. With one out, Quintana stole third and then came in to score on a wild pitch. That got the Storm on the board to cut the deficit to three. In the fifth, Lake Elsinore used plate discipline to add on two more. Itsuki Takemoto came in to pitch for the Ports and walked the first two batters he faced and hit the third on what would have been ball four. After a strikeout from Dawson Willis, Bradley Frye nearly gave the Storm the lead with a long flyball to centerfield. Max Durrington caught it on the track and it went down as a sacrifice fly. Then with runners on the corners, the Storm tried and succeeded on a double-steal that scored Yimy Tovar from third. After five, Lake Elsinore cut the deficit to just one run.

The bottom of the sixth was the highlight of the night for the Storm. After Conner Westenburg was hit by a pitch and advanced to second on a fielder's choice, Lake Elsinore catcher Alcides Hernandez drilled an RBI-single back up the middle to score Westenburg and tie the game at four. Unfortunately for the Storm, the tie was short lived. Bucciero led off the seventh with a single and Bobby Blandford cracked his second homer of the series 383 feet into right-center field. Stockton would add on two more insurance runs in the ninth off the bats of Bryan Andrade and Guedez. The scoring stopped with Stockton taking this one 8-4 after Lake Elsinore punted multiple chances to win its third of four games.

Lake Elsinore returns to action on Friday to face Stockton for game four of the six-game set from Diamond Stadium. This is the second series of the year between the Storm and the Ports with Stockton winning the first series 4-2. The Storm will turn to LHP Kruz Schoolcraft (1-4, 6.65 ERA) to face Grizzlies LHP Corey Braun (2-3, 7.20 ERA). First pitch is scheduled for 6:45 p.m. PT.

Check out the Lake Elsinore Storm Statistics

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California League Stories from July 5, 2026


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