WASHINGTON (Interstat) — Sandy Alcantara pitched seven strong innings to lead the Miami Marlins to a 7-3 victory over the Washington Nationals on Monday at Nationals Park. Alcantara (4-4) allowed three runs on seven hits with five strikeouts, bouncing back from consecutive losses. Richard Lovelady (2-3) took the loss.

Miami scored one run in the first inning on a bases-loaded walk, then broke the game open with three runs in the sixth. Heriberto Hernández hit a two-run homer, and Connor Norby added an RBI double. Kyle Stowers capped the scoring with a two-run homer in the ninth.

Washington answered with two runs in the second on Jacob Young’s two-run homer, his eighth of the season. Curtis Mead drove in a run in the third, but the Nationals managed no further offense. Miami relievers Pete Fairbanks and Michael Petersen each tossed a scoreless inning.

The Marlins had 10 hits, led by Otto Lopez’s three hits. Washington had seven hits. Attendance was 11,808, and the game lasted 2 hours, 51 minutes. Miami improved to 27-34, while Washington fell to 31-30. The teams continue their series Tuesday.