Simpson sac fly lifts Lugnuts in 9th

MIDLAND**, Mich. –* *Ryan Lasko** raced home on a Will Simpson ninth-inning sacrifice fly, and the Lansing Lugnuts (18-20, 50-53) eked out a 3-2 win over the Great Lakes Loons (19-18, 53-50) on Wednesday night at Dow Diamond.

The game was nip and tuck throughout: Lansing starter Mitch Myers whiffed nine batters in 5 2/3 innings, but a Nick Biddison sixth-inning homer broke a scoreless deadlock.

In the seventh, Jared Dickey swung the Nuts into the lead with a two-run double – only to see a Jordan Thompson RBI double off Dylan Hall tie the score in the home half.

After a scoreless eighth inning, Lasko led off the ninth against Michael Martinez with a broken-bat shot mishandled by shortstop Thompson. He then stole second and took third on a single by Dickey, setting up Simpson to give the Lugnuts the lead with a long fly to right field.

Diego Barrera took care of a perfect bottom of the ninth, closing out both a second scoreless inning of relief and the Nuts’ first win of the series, halving the first two games of the six-game set.

Lasko finished 2-for-4 with two singles, two steals and two runs scored, while Dickey went 2-for-3 with a single, double and walk.

Next up, Lansing right-hander Kade Morris, coming off a seven-inning gem in his Nuts debut, battles Great Lakes lefty Maddux Bruns on Thursday at 7:05 p.m.

The Lugnuts play at the Loons through Sunday, returning home from August 13-18 against West Michigan. For tickets and further information, visit milb.com/lansing or call (517) 485-4500.

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