Birds' offense labors in Game 1 of SDCS

KINSTON, N.C. (September 7, 2017) - Vimael Machin recorded three hits for the Myrtle Beach Pelicans on Saturday despite their 4-1 loss to the Down East Wood Ducks in Game 1 of the Southern Division Championship Series from Grainger Stadium.
Matt Lipka kicked off the scoring for Down East (1-0) in the bottom of the first inning with a solo home run off Myrtle Beach (0-1) right-hander Mike Rucker (0-1) to give Down East a 1-0 lead. 

With one out in the bottom of the fourth inning, Yanio Perez singled before advancing to second on a base hit from Luis La O. Carlos Garay drove both runners home on a two-run double to center field. Preston Scott singled to put runners on the corners before an RBI single from Evan Van Hoosier extended the Wood Ducks lead to 4-0.
Kyle Miller entered the contest in the middle of the fourth inning for Rucker. The right-hander tossed 3.1 scoreless frames, and David Berg finished off the contest with 1.1 innings of one-hit baseball. 
Myrtle Beach's lone run of the contest came in the top of the sixth inning. Tyler Alamo led off the frame with a double to left field before advancing home on a one-out double from Roberto Caro to make the score 4-1. 
Willson Contreras made his first rehab appearance with the Pelicans on Thursday night. The catcher went 0-2 with a hit by pitch before being lifted in the fifth inning by P.J. Higgins as a defensive replacement. 
C.D. Pelham made his High-A debut for the Wood Ducks, and the left-hander tossed two scoreless innings en route to his first save of the 2017 postseason. 
Myrtle Beach will host Game 2 on Friday in a seven-inning contest with a 5:05 p.m. first pitch. RHP Alec Mills (0-1, 3.00 ERA) will pitch for the Pelicans. If the Pelicans force a Game 3, the contest will take place 30 minutes after the conclusion of Game 2 and will feature RHP Duncan Robinson (4-4, 2.37 ERA) for the Birds. Coverage will begin at 4:50 p.m. on MiLB.TV, MyrtleBeachPelicans.com/Broadcast, TuneIn and the MiLB First Pitch app.
The 2017 season is the 19th season for the Pelicans franchise and third as the Class A-Advanced affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. For information on tickets to see the Pelicans in 2017, please call (843) 918-6000, e-mail [email protected], or visit www.MyrtleBeachPelicans.com.
ABOUT THE PELICANS: The Myrtle Beach Pelicans are the Class A-Advanced affiliate of the Chicago Cubs and play their home games at TicketReturn.Com Field at Pelicans Ballpark in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The park has ranked in the top eight in all of Minor League Baseball by Stadium Journey in each of the last six seasons. The same publication also placed the Pelicans in the Top 100 Stadium Experiences in all of sports in each of the last six years and the best in the Carolina League for six straight seasons as well. In May 2015, TicketReturn.Com Field at Pelicans Ballpark won the 2015 TripAdvisor.com Certificate of Excellence award. The Pelicans are the two-time defending Mills Cup Champions, winning the title in 2015 and 2016 as well as 2000 and co-Mills Cup championship honors in the inaugural 1999 season. The Pelicans have made ten postseason appearances behind 12 half-season Southern Division championships, including the first half of the 2015 season and second half of 2016. For more information on the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, please contact the Pelicans at (843) 918-6000 or emailing [email protected].