SAN JOSE (Interstat) — The Lake Elsinore Storm clinched their California League playoff series with a 13-2 victory over the San Jose Giants on Wednesday, September 16, 2026, at San Jose Municipal Stadium. Lake Elsinore won Game 3 and took the series 2-1, ending San Jose’s season. The game lasted 3 hours, 11 minutes and drew an announced crowd of 2,489. Lake Elsinore improved to 70-63, while San Jose’s record moved to 80-54. The Storm, who are the visiting team in the series, won the series after San Jose had evened it with a 9-1 win on Tuesday. Lake Elsinore had taken the opener 12-1 on Sunday.

Lake Elsinore’s offense produced 13 hits and scored in six innings. Qrey Lott led the way with a 3-for-4 performance and two RBIs. Lott doubled in the third, tripled in the fourth and doubled again in the sixth, driving in runs each time. Nu’u Contrades went 2 for 4 with a home run and three RBIs. Contrades opened the scoring with a solo homer in the second inning, then added a two-run double in the sixth. Joe Tiroly finished 2 for 4 with two RBIs, collecting an RBI double in the third and a sacrifice fly in the fourth. Alex Conover added a sacrifice fly in the eighth. Dawson Willis had a three-run single in the ninth that became a three-run play after a fielding error by center fielder Andy Polanco, capping the scoring.

The Storm pitching staff held San Jose to two runs despite allowing 12 hits. Lan-Hong Su earned the win, working 3 innings and allowing four hits, one earned run and striking out eight. Coleman Borthwick followed with 2 innings, two hits, no earned runs and two strikeouts. Andrew Wright tossed 2 innings, giving up three hits, no earned runs and striking out two. Sean Fitzpatrick struck out two in a hitless inning. Lake Elsinore pitchers combined for 17 strikes, 67 balls and 17 balls in play. The Storm also turned key double plays behind their pitchers, while San Jose grounded into two double plays.

San Jose starter Ricardo Estrada took the loss, falling to 6-4 on the season. The Giants scored single runs in the middle innings but could not close the gap. Ben Bybee provided 2 1/3 innings of relief, allowing one hit, no earned runs and striking out one. Dylan Carter worked 1 1/3 innings, yielding two hits, one earned run and striking out one. Beau Bryans recorded one out in his appearance, allowing no hits, no earned runs and striking out one. San Jose finished with 12 hits, but its offense was slowed by strikeouts and double plays. The Giants had won Game 2 of the series 9-1 but were eliminated with the loss.

The Storm scored early and often, building a 5-0 lead through four innings before adding to it. Contrades’ solo homer in the second gave Lake Elsinore a 1-0 edge. Lott’s triple and Tiroly’s sacrifice fly helped extend the lead in the fourth. In the sixth, Contrades doubled home two runs and Lott doubled home another as the Storm pulled away. The eighth brought another run on Conover’s sacrifice fly. The ninth broke the game open when Willis’s single to left was deflected by Polanco in center, allowing three runs to score. San Jose had chances, including a bases-loaded situation in the seventh, but could only manage one run in that inning and one earlier in the game. The Giants left runners on base throughout and were hurt by two double plays.

The game was Game 3 of the California League advanced-A playoff series. After the final out, the series status was Lake Elsinore wins 2-1. Lake Elsinore has won the series. The winning pitcher was Lan-Hong Su of the Lake Elsinore Storm, who has 1 win and 4 losses on the season. The losing pitcher was Ricardo Estrada of the San Jose Giants, who has 6 wins and 4 losses on the season. Key performances included Qrey Lott of the Lake Elsinore Storm, who had a 3-for-4 game with two RBIs; Nu’u Contrades of the Lake Elsinore Storm, who went 2 for 4 with one home run and three RBIs; and Coleman Borthwick of the Lake Elsinore Storm, who pitched 2 innings with two hits, no earned runs and two strikeouts. Other notable efforts came from Lan-Hong Su, Ben Bybee, Andrew Wright, Joe Tiroly, Sean Fitzpatrick, Beau Bryans and Dylan Carter.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Lake Elsinore Storm 8, San Jose Giants 7. Interstat’s ELO system had projected San Jose with a 66.1 percent probability to win.