DAEJEON (Interstat) — An Woo-jin struck out 10 over five innings, and the Kiwoom Heroes used a steady offensive attack to beat the Hanwha Eagles 9-3 on Sunday afternoon at Daejeon Hanbat Baseball Stadium. The Heroes, the visiting team, improved to 51-81-4. The Eagles fell to 53-77-5. Attendance was 17,000.

An allowed three earned runs on five hits and two walks. His 10 strikeouts were a game high and helped Kiwoom hold Hanwha to three runs. An had struck out seven over six scoreless innings in his previous recent start, a win at KT.

Kiwoom finished with 11 hits, while Hanwha had seven. The Heroes scored three runs in the first inning and two in the second. They added one in the fourth, one in the fifth and two in the sixth. The offense was led by Keston Hiura, who went 4-for-4 with a home run and an RBI. Matthew Davidson went 2-for-4 with a home run and an RBI.

Davidson opened the scoring with a home run in the first after Choo Jae-hyun flied out to left. Kim Woong-bin and Park Chan-hyeok then struck out. In the bottom half, Choi In-ho walked, but Jung Eun-won flied out to center, Moon Hyun-bin popped out to short and Kang Baek-ho struck out.

Kiwoom added to its lead in the second. Lim Byeong-wuk was hit by a pitch and Eo Joon-seo walked. Kim Jae-hyun doubled to left-center, scoring Lim and moving Eo to third. Yum Seung-won followed with a single to right field that scored Eo. Gwon Hyuk-bin then hit a sacrifice fly to left, scoring Kim. Choo reached on a fielder’s choice that retired Yum at second, and Davidson grounded out to short.

Hanwha responded with Park Jung-hyun’s three-run homer. Park finished 2-for-4 with a home run and three RBIs. The blast accounted for all of Hanwha’s scoring. Hanwha starter Zimmerman worked 4 2/3 innings, allowing three earned runs on four hits while striking out six. Joo Hyun-sang followed with two scoreless innings, giving up two hits and one walk.

Kiwoom’s bullpen closed the door. Park Jin-hyung pitched a scoreless inning, allowing one hit. Won Jong-hyan also threw a scoreless inning, yielding one hit and one walk while striking out one. Yun Seok-won struck out one in a hitless, scoreless inning. Park Ji-sung matched him with a hitless, scoreless inning that included one strikeout.

Hiura’s home run came in the fifth. He also singled in the third, singled in the seventh and doubled in the ninth. Davidson added a single in the ninth, and Park Chan-hyeok drew a walk later in the inning. Park Chan-hyeok also singled in the seventh to drive in runs. Lim flied out to left, and Yeo Dong-uk struck out to end that seventh-inning threat. In the ninth, Park Ju-hong popped out to second.

Hanwha had chances. In the second, Roh Si-hwan singled and Kim Tae-yean singled before Park’s three-run homer. In the fourth, Han Ji-youn was hit by a pitch and Park singled, but An struck out Choi and Jung. Hanwha put two runners on in the sixth when Heo In-seo singled and Kim Tae-yean walked, but Han Ji-youn struck out and Park flied out to right. Choi then grounded out to second.

In the third, Kim Woong-bin singled and Park Chan-hyeok was hit by a pitch. Lim grounded into a double play that retired Park and moved Keston Hiura to third. Eo homered, scoring Hiura. Kim Jae-hyun then reached on a dropped third strike. In the bottom half, Moon struck out, Kang struck out, Roh singled and Heo struck out.

In the fourth, Yum reached on an infield single. Gwon sacrificed him to second. Choo grounded out to short, moving Yum to third, and Davidson grounded out to the pitcher. In the bottom half, Kim Tae-yean grounded out to the pitcher, Han was hit by a pitch, Park singled, and Choi and Jung both struck out.

In the fifth, Hiura homered. Park Chan-hyeok reached on a dropped third strike, Lim struck out and Yeo struck out. In the bottom half, Moon struck out, Kang flied out to right and Roh struck out.

In the sixth, Kim Jae-hyun struck out, Yum grounded out to second and Gwon struck out. In the bottom half, Heo singled, Kim Tae-yean walked, Han struck out, Park flied out to right and Choi grounded out to second.

In the eighth, Kim Jae-hyun flied out to left, Yum popped out to short and Gwon popped out to first. In the bottom half, Heo grounded out to second, Kim Tae-yean flied out to center and Han struck out.

An worked around traffic throughout. He struck out Kang in the first, Han and Han in the second, Moon and Kang in the third, and Choi and Jung in the fourth. He also struck out Roh in the fifth. His 10 strikeouts gave Kiwoom’s bullpen a lead to protect.

Kiwoom added insurance in the seventh. Davidson walked, Hiura singled and Park Chan-hyeok singled to center, scoring Hiura and Davidson. Lim flied out to left, and Yeo struck out. The Heroes also threatened in the ninth when Davidson singled and Hiura doubled, but Park Ju-hong popped out to second.

Hanwha’s bullpen kept the game within reach at times. Joo’s two scoreless innings were a bright spot. Zimmerman struck out six and limited damage despite the early pressure. Park Jung-hyun’s home run was Hanwha’s loudest hit, and Kim Tae-yean and Roh Si-hwan each contributed singles in the loss.

The Heroes’ victory followed a win at Hanwha in their previous meeting and a road win at KT. Hanwha had entered after a loss at Samsung. Kiwoom’s record now stands at 51 wins, 81 losses and 4 ties. Hanwha’s record is 53 wins, 77 losses and 5 ties. The teams are scheduled to meet again in their next series opener.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Kiwoom Heroes 6, Hanwha Eagles 4. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Hanwha with a 65.1 percent probability to win.