This is a press release courtesy of the Portland Beavers

Ricky Ledee hit a pinch-hit, game-winning three-run home run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning as the New Orleans Zephyrs rallied for a 7-5 win over the Portland Beavers at Zephyr Field Sunday night.

New Orleans (58-50) erased a two-run deficit in the ninth inning to win its eighth game in the last nine outings.

Portland (44-65) snapped a two-game win streak with the loss.  It was just the second time in 39 games this season that the Beavers lost when they led going into the ninth inning.

Willie Collazo (4-5) threw two innings of scoreless relief to earn the win for the Zephyrs.

Scott Cassidy (1-2) surrendered four runs in the ninth inning to take the loss for the Beavers.

Trailing 5-3 in the bottom of the ninth, New Orleans scored a run on a walk and two singles before Ledee blasted his game-winning shot into the swimming pool beyond the right field fence.

Ray Chang was 3-for-4 with two runs scored and four other players, including starting pitcher Roger Deago, had two hits for the Beavers.

Fernando Tatis was 3-for-4 with a double and a home run for the Zephyrs.

New Orleans jumped out to a 3-0 lead after Tatis blasted a two-run home run in the first inning to score former Beaver Ben Johnson and Jesus Feliciano drove in Johnson with a sacrifice fly an inning later.

Portland tied the game in the fourth, when Chang’s double and a throwing error scored two runs and then Deago’s RBI single brought home Chang.  The Beavers tacked on a run each in the fifth and sixth innings on a sacrifice fly from Brian Myrow and an RBI single from Yordany Ramirez to take a 5-3 lead, which stood up until the ninth inning.

Game three of the four-game series between the two teams is Monday.  First pitch is set for 5 p.m. (Pacific).

NOTES: Rain delayed the start of the game an hour and forty-six minutes … Myrow is 8-for 22 (.364) through six games of this eight-game road trip… Shea Hillenbrand, signed on Saturday, made his Beavers’ debut and started at third base … Portland has 44 combined hits in its last three games.