By Scott Lemon

The Sioux Falls Canaries’ offense scored ten runs on Thursday night and coasted to a 10-6 victory over the Texas AirHogs.

Starter Dylan Thompson pitched five solid innings, allowing only one run to score on three hits while walking three and striking out five. The Canaries’ pitching staff in total had 12 strikeouts on the night.

The Canaries jumped out to a lead in the third and never looked back. Mike Falsetti reached on a one-out walk, then advanced to second on an Ethan Chapman single. Blake Schmit reached on a two-out walk to load the bases, then J.C. Linares drove in his first run of the day the unconventional way: a bases-loaded walk to make it a 1-0 game. Rubi Silva drove in two more with a sharp single scoring Chapman and Schmit to push the lead to 3-0.

Thompson (2-1, 2.01 ERA) gave up his lone run of the day in the fourth. He retired the first two batters of the inning in order, but gave up a towering homer to right off the bat of Cody Lenahan.

The Birds tacked on two more in the fourth. Falsetti reached on a fielder’s choice and came around to score on a Chapman triple to the right field corner. Chapman came in to score as well on a single by Darwin Perez to make it a 5-1 ballgame.

Linares plastered a leadoff homer over the wall in left center, his first since coming off of the disabled list earlier this week. The Canaries would tack on two more in the inning to push their lead to 8-1.

The AirHogs would mount a comeback in the late innings. Burt Reynolds hit his first homer of the night in the sixth, a solo shot to straightaway center field to cut the lead to 8-2.

After B.J. Guinn hit his first homer in a Canaries’ uniform in the seventh to push the lead to 10-2, the AirHogs would go on to score four-straight unanswered runs. James Jones gave up a three-run homer in the eighth to Brian Bistagne, and Reynolds hit his second homer of the night in the top of the ninth to cut the lead to 10-6. Billy Waltrip buckled down and earned the final two outs of the night to earn the save.

The Canaries continue their eight-games-in-eight-days streak on Friday night, as they host Texas for game two of the four game weekend series. Friday is Boy Scout Night at The Birdcage, as the Canaries will be honoring local Scout troops in the pre-game ceremony. Friday’s game is sponsored by Buffalo Wild Wings, as they will have a booth set up near the main gates featuring where fans can sample some of their famous sauces and rubs. As always, it’s also Friday Night Fireworks at The Birdcage, with post-game fireworks presented by All-Star Fireworks and sponsored by Orthopedic Institute and Sioux Falls Specialty Hospital. Contact the Canaries ticket office for information regarding single game or season ticket options by calling 605-336-6060 or visit the website at www.sfcanaries.com for more information.

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