KANSAS CITY, Kan. – The Kansas City T-Bones took a step in the right direction tonight as they took down the first place Gary SouthShore RailCats with a 7-1 win in front of 5,320 fans at CommunityAmerica Ballpark.  Kansas City came into the game having lost 10 of their last 12 while Gary had won nine of their last 10, but the play on the field told a different story than the numbers projected.

T-Bones starter Kenny Durost (pictured) collected his first career complete game as the offense gave him seven runs of support.  Kansas City used a three-run first inning to jump ahead with a monster two-run home run by Calvin Pickering to cap off the frame.  It was Pickering’s first home run since Opening Day.

Once the line-up got back to the top of the order in the third, the T-Bones bats produced again. Neb Brown walked for the second time in the game to jumpstart the inning before Mario Delgado singled and Pickering walked to load the bases.  Shortstop Donaldo Mendez would drive home Brown to give the T-Bones a 4-0 lead.

In the sixth inning, the bottom half of the T-Bones lineup went to work to add a few more insurance runs for Durost. After Austin Easley started the inning off with a double to left center and Nelson Gord was hit by a pitch for the second time in the contest, Brown hit a two-out home run down the right-field line to put Kansas City up 7-0.

Durost allowed just three hits through his first eight innings of work and headed into the ninth inning looking for his first career shutout and complete game.  Durost struck out Brett Wallace and Steve Haake in the inning, but a single from Tanner Townsend would score Jermaine Allensworth, who also singled and advanced to second on a walk to Jose Yepez.  Durost would then induce a fly out from Dave Detienne to end the game, securing his first career complete game.

The two teams will face off again tomorrow night as Larkin Braxton takes the mound for Kansas City against Jim Paduch.  First pitch is scheduled for 7:05.

Game Notes:  Every starter but Nelson Gord got a hit for Kansas City, but no player got more than one hit…Gord was hit by a pitch twice in the contest…Aharon Eggleston stole his league-leading eighth base of the season in the fourth inning.