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GRAND PRAIRIE, Tex. (June 28, 2019) – A grand slam from Chase Simpson and two solo homers from John Nester powered the Cleburne Railroaders to a 7-5 win over the Texas AirHogs on Friday night at AirHogs Stadium.

The Railroaders offense was quiet through five innings against Texas starter Taylor Wright, who was making his first start of the year. Along the way, the AirHogs grabbed a 2-0 lead with an RBI single from Li Ning in the third and a run-scoring double from Javion Randle in the fifth.

In the sixth, however, Texas (8-30) went to the bullpen for Ryan Smith, who was greeted rudely with two hits and a walk to load the bases. Ryan Brett smacked an RBI single into center to cut the deficit to 2-1, then Simpson put the ‘Roaders in front with a long grand slam to right for a 5-2 advantage. It was the first grand slam of the 2019 season for the Railroaders.

Nester followed with a towering solo home run to left, extending the lead to 6-2 and ending the night for Smith (1-4). Nester added a second solo shot in the eighth, which would prove critical as Texas surged back with three runs in the bottom of the inning. Jonathan Moroney slapped a two-run triple, and Yang Jin plated him with an RBI groundout to make it 7-5.

D.J. Sharabi picked up a strikeout for the final out of the eighth, then Tyler Wilson set down the side in order in the ninth to record his seventh save of the year. Charlie Gillies (2-4) pitched well to pick up his second win, allowing just two runs on six hits over six innings of work.

K.C. Huth continued his torrid stretch at the plate with three hits, adding two stolen bases and a crucial outfield assist to end the sixth. Grant Buck also contributed three hits.

The Railroaders and AirHogs continue their series on Saturday night with game two of the set. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 PM, with left-hander Eudis Idrogo (1-3, 6.52) getting the ball for Cleburne and righty Gan Quan (0-3, 5.82) going for Texas.

For information on partnerships, season tickets, group outings, and party packages, call the Railroaders main office at (817) 945-8705, or visit the Railroaders official website at www.railroaderbaseball.com.