SUWON (Interstat) — Logan Allen struck out 14 batters over eight innings and the KT Wiz scored six runs in the first inning on the way to a 9-0 victory over the visiting Lotte Giants on Monday afternoon at Suwon Baseball Stadium. Allen allowed seven hits and no earned runs, improving to 5-4. The Wiz improved to 82-48-5. The Giants fell to 59-71-3. The afternoon game drew 18,700.

Allen was dominant from the first pitch. The KT starter worked eight innings, gave up seven hits, and kept Lotte off the scoreboard. He struck out 14, finishing with 14 strikeouts in his outing. Lotte managed seven hits but never scored. Allen turned the game over to the bullpen with a nine-run lead. Mon Yong-ik worked the ninth, allowing no hits and striking out one. Allen’s 14 strikeouts were the most important part of the game, as he kept Lotte from building any momentum.

Jang Jun-won led the KT offense. He went 2 for 3 with two home runs and four RBIs. Jang hit a three-run homer in the first inning and added a solo shot in the sixth. Ahn Hyun-min went 2 for 4 with a home run and one RBI, hitting a solo homer in the seventh. Han Seung-taek went 2 for 3 with an RBI. Kim Sang-su went 1 for 3 with two RBIs. Sam Hilliard doubled and scored in the first. Choi Won-jun doubled and scored. Kim Hyun-soo singled and scored. Jang Sung-woo walked and scored.

The first inning set the tone. Choi Won-jun led off with a double down the left-field line. Kim Hyun-soo followed with a single to right field, moving Choi to third. After Ahn Hyun-min struck out, Sam Hilliard doubled to right field, scoring Choi and moving Kim to third. Jang Sung-woo walked to load the bases. Kim Sang-su doubled to left field, scoring Hilliard and Kim Hyun-soo while Jang Sung-woo advanced to third. Heo Kyoung-min grounded out to third for the second out. Han Seung-taek then hit an infield single on a slow roller to third, scoring Jang Sung-woo and moving Kim Sang-su to third. Jang Jun-won followed with a homer to left field, scoring Han Seung-taek and Kim Sang-su. Choi Won-jun flied out to center to end the inning. KT sent 11 batters to the plate and scored six runs. The six-run first gave Allen all the support he needed.

Allen kept Lotte quiet after the first. In the second, he struck out Jeon Min-jae, got Son Seong-bin to pop out to first, and struck out Jeon Jun-woo. In the third, he struck out Cho Se-jin, got Yoon Dong-hee to ground out to short, allowed a single to Víctor Reyes, and struck out Na Seung-yeup. In the fourth, he retired Go Seung-min and Han Dong-hui before Jeon Min-jae singled to left. Son Seong-bin flied out to center to end the threat. In the fifth, Jeon Jun-woo singled down the left-field line, but Allen struck out Cho Se-jin and Yoon Dong-hee and got Reyes to fly out to right. In the sixth, Na Seung-yeup flied out, Go Seung-min singled, and Allen struck out Han Dong-hui and Jeon Min-jae. In the seventh, Allen struck out Park Kun-woo, got Jeon Jun-woo on a dropped third strike, and retired Cho Se-jin on a popout to short. In the eighth, Yoon Dong-hee grounded out, Reyes singled, Na Seung-yeup struck out, Go Seung-min singled, and Han Dong-hui struck out. Allen finished with 14 strikeouts over eight innings.

KT added more offense later. In the sixth, Han Seung-taek grounded out to second before Jang Jun-won homered to left field. Choi Won-jun then grounded out to first, and Kim Hyun-soo grounded out to short. In the seventh, Ahn Hyun-min homered to center field. Sam Hilliard struck out, but Jang Sung-woo doubled to left-center. Ryu Hyun-in grounded out to short, moving Son Min-seok to third. Heo Kyoung-min grounded out to first, allowing Son Min-seok to score. KT added two runs in the seventh, one on Ahn Hyun-min’s homer and another on Heo Kyoung-min’s groundout. The Wiz finished with 13 hits and nine runs, while Lotte was held to seven hits and no runs.

Lotte’s bullpen had mixed results. Kim Jin-uk took the loss, falling to 6-7. Kim Han-kyeol pitched two innings, allowing one hit and one earned run. Koo Seung-min worked one inning, giving up two hits and one earned run with one strikeout. Kim Ki-jun pitched one inning, allowing one hit and no earned runs with one strikeout. KT’s Mon Yong-ik pitched a scoreless ninth, allowing no hits and striking out one. The Wiz finished with 13 hits. The Giants finished with seven hits. KT’s bullpen needed only one inning after Allen’s eight-inning outing.

Lotte’s hitters had chances but could not convert. Na Seung-yeup singled in the first. Víctor Reyes singled in the third and again in the eighth, finishing 2 for 4. Jeon Min-jae singled in the fourth. Jeon Jun-woo singled in the fifth. Go Seung-min singled in the sixth and eighth. Han Dong-hui, Cho Se-jin, Yoon Dong-hee, Park Kun-woo, and Son Seong-bin were among the Lotte batters retired by Allen and the KT bullpen. Each time Lotte put a runner on, KT pitching answered. Allen struck out 14, and the Wiz defense behind him kept Lotte from turning hits into runs. Lotte left runners on base in the third, fifth, sixth and eighth innings.

KT’s attack finished with 13 hits. Choi Won-jun doubled and scored. Kim Hyun-soo singled and scored. Sam Hilliard doubled and scored. Jang Sung-woo walked and scored. Kim Sang-su doubled and drove in two. Han Seung-taek had two hits and an RBI. Jang Jun-won had two home runs and four RBIs. Ahn Hyun-min had two hits, including a home run, and one RBI. The Wiz also got a scoreless inning from Mon Yong-ik, who struck out one.

The Giants fell to 59-71-3. The Wiz improved to 82-48-5. KT took the series finale after a tie and a win in the previous two meetings between the teams. Lotte returns home to face Doosan, while KT travels to Kiwoom. The Wiz’s 13-hit attack supported Allen’s 14-strikeout performance.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Lotte Giants 8, KT Wiz 7. Interstat’s ELO system had projected KT with a 61.6 percent probability to win.