NAGOYA, Japan (Interstat) — Ryoji Kuribayashi delivered another masterful performance on the mound and Elehuris Montero provided a crucial late-inning blast as the Hiroshima Carp snapped a two-game skid with a 5-2 victory over the Chunichi Dragons on Wednesday evening at Nagoya Dome.

A crowd of 33,703 watched the Carp improve to 6-8 across all competitions this season, while the Dragons fell to a league-worst 4-12.

The game’s pivotal sequence came in the top of the eighth inning, with Hiroshima clinging to a 3-2 lead after the Dragons had rallied in the seventh. With one out and a runner on first, Montero stepped in against Dragons reliever Yorinosuke Sakurai. The Hiroshima first baseman, who had already driven in a run with a sixth-inning double, connected on a towering two-run home run to right field, extending the Carp’s lead to three runs and effectively sealing the victory.

That insurance proved vital, as it provided a cushion for Hiroshima’s bullpen to work with after Kuribayashi’s dominant start. The right-hander, named the top star of the game, earned his second win of the season against no losses. He stifled the Dragons’ lineup for 6 1/3 innings, allowing two earned runs on five hits while striking out six. His only blemish came in the seventh inning when the Dragons finally broke through.

For 6 1/3 innings, Kuribayashi was nearly untouchable, building on his stellar outing against Hanshin on April 5, where he threw eight innings of one-run ball. He carried a shutout and a 3-0 lead into the bottom of the seventh before running into trouble. Back-to-back singles by Yohei Ohshima and Shuhei Takahashi, followed by a one-out, run-scoring single from Yutaro Itayama, ended his night. Reliever Taichi Saito allowed an inherited runner to score on a double by pinch-hitter Toshiki Abe, but then escaped the jam to preserve a one-run lead.

Shota Nakazaki took over in the ninth and worked a perfect inning, inducing a game-ending flyout to center, to record his second save of the season.

The loss went to Chunichi starter Kyle Muller, who fell to 0-1. Muller pitched effectively for 5 1/3 innings, surrendering two earned runs on five hits and striking out five. He departed with one out in the sixth after allowing a double to Ryosuke Kikuchi. Reliever Kenshin Makino entered and immediately gave up a run-scoring double to Kaito Kozono and the RBI double to Montero, turning a scoreless game into a 3-0 Hiroshima advantage.

Hiroshima opened the scoring in the second inning without the benefit of a hit. Shogo Sakakura walked, stole second, and came home on a two-out single by Shosei Nakamura that deflected off Muller’s glove.

The game, which lasted 3 hours and 7 minutes, defied the pregame projections. Interstat’s game simulator had projected a narrow 3-2 Carp victory, but its ELO system gave the Dragons a 52.2 percent probability to win. Chunichi had been installed as a 1.5-run favorite, and the total score of seven combined runs went over the posted over/under line of 5.5.

The victory allowed Hiroshima to split the brief two-game series after dropping the opener 6-2 on Tuesday. The teams had split a three-game series in Hiroshima to open the season in late March.

Hiroshima’s offense tallied 10 hits, led by Montero’s two hits and three RBIs. Kikuchi added two hits, including a double, and scored twice. Chunichi managed only five hits as a team, with Itayama and Takahashi each recording one RBI.

The Carp bullpen combination of Saito, Taylor Hearn and Nakazaki provided 2 2/3 innings of perfect relief, retiring all eight batters they faced to close out the win.

Hiroshima now returns home to begin a three-game series against the Yokohama BayStars on Friday. The Dragons hit the road for a three-game set against the Hanshin Tigers, also beginning Friday.