DAEJEON, South Korea (Interstat) — Hwang Dong-ha pitched six strong innings and Kim Do-young hit a three-run homer as the Kia Tigers defeated the Hanwha Eagles 6-4 on Tuesday evening at Daejeon Hanbat Baseball Stadium.

Hwang, who entered the game with a 6.0-inning scoreless outing in his previous start May 28 against Kiwoom, allowed two hits and one earned run while striking out six. He walked two and threw 92 pitches in his second consecutive quality start after a rough outing June 3 against Lotte.

Kia took control early. In the top of the first inning, Kim Min-gyu flied out and Kim Sun-bin grounded out before Kim Do-young reached on an infield single to left side. Aderlin Rodriguez followed with a double to left-center that drove in Kim Do-young for a 1-0 lead.

The Tigers added two more in the second. Han Jun-su walked, and Kim Ho-ryung bunted for a hit. An error by Hanwha pitcher Park Jun-yeong allowed Han Jun-su to advance to third. Park Min reached on a fielder’s choice, and another error by second baseman Sim Woo-jun allowed Han Jun-su to score. Kim Ho-ryung later scored on a fielder’s choice by Kim Min-gyu.

Hanwha got its first run in the third inning. Lee Do-yun doubled to right-center, advanced to third on a flyout by Sim Woo-jun and scored on a groundout by Oh Jae-won.

Kia broke the game open in the fourth. With two outs, Kim Min-gyu walked, Kim Sun-bin walked, and Kim Do-young launched a three-run homer to left field, scoring Kim Min-gyu and Kim Sun-bin for a 6-1 advantage. Kim Do-young finished the game 2 for 4 with a home run and three RBIs.

The Tigers threatened again in the fifth but came away empty. Na Sung-bum led off with an infield single, and Han Jun-su walked. After a flyout and a walk to Park Min, Jeong Hyun-chang grounded into a double play.

Hwang retired seven straight batters from the fourth inning through the sixth. He struck out four in his final three innings of work, allowing only a single to Kang Baek-ho in the seventh before being lifted.

Kia’s bullpen held the lead but not without drama. In the eighth inning, Hanwha mounted a rally against reliever Kwak Do-gyu. Heo In-seo singled to left, and Lee Do-yun struck out. Pinch-hitter Park Jeong-hyeon then homered to left field, driving in Heo In-seo to cut the lead to 6-3. Oh Jae-won grounded out, but Yonathan Perlaza followed with a solo homer to right field, making it 6-4. Kwak struck out Moon Hyun-bin to end the inning. Kwak allowed one hit and struck out three in his one inning of work.

Kia closer Sung Yeong-tak pitched a scoreless ninth, allowing one hit and striking out one to secure the victory.

Hanwha starter Park Jun-yeong lasted only 1 2/3 innings, allowing five runs on three hits and three walks. He struck out one. Five Hanwha relievers combined to allow one run on four hits over 6 1/3 innings, with Jeong Woo-joo, Jang Ji-su, Cho Dong-uk and Yun San-heum each throwing scoreless frames.

The Eagles’ offense managed seven hits. Heo In-seo singled and scored in the eighth, and Park Jeong-hyeon delivered a pinch-hit two-run homer. Perlaza added a solo shot. But Hanwha left only three runners on base and struck out 12 times.

Kia improved to 33-27-1, while Hanwha fell to 30-28. The Tigers have won four of their last five games. Hanwha lost for the third time in four contests.

The game drew an announced attendance of 17,000 at the 13,000-capacity ballpark.

Hanwha and Kia meet again Wednesday in the second game of the three-game set. The series continues Thursday before the Tigers return home to face Doosan on Friday. Hanwha travels to Kiwoom on Friday.

Interstat’s game simulator projected a final score of Hanwha 5, Kia 4. Interstat’s ELO system gave Hanwha a 54.40 percent probability to win. Hanwha was installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus 1.5. The total score of 8 went over the over-under line of 11.0.