OSAKA, Japan (Interstat) — Takayuki Katoh pitched eight dominant innings and Yuki Nomura delivered a two-run homer as the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters blanked the Orix Buffaloes 3-0 on Saturday afternoon at Osaka Dome.

Katoh, who improved to 4-1, scattered three hits, struck out three and did not allow a run. The right-hander retired 11 of the first 12 batters he faced and never let a Buffaloes runner advance past first base. Taisei Yanagawa worked a perfect ninth inning for his seventh save, striking out one.

Nomura finished with two hits in five at-bats, including a towering shot to left-center field in the fifth inning that broke the game open. The Fighters took a 1-0 lead in the first inning and added two more on Nomura’s blast.

The victory evened the three-game series after Orix won 4-3 on Friday. Nippon Ham improved to 17-20, while Orix dropped to 22-13.

Katoh set the tone immediately. He retired the side in order in the first on two groundouts and a flyout to center. The Buffaloes managed only one baserunner in the first four innings, a two-out single by Ryoto Kita in the second that was erased when Tomoya Noguchi lined out to shortstop to end the inning.

Nippon Ham manufactured its first run in the opening frame against Orix starter Ryuhei Sotani. With one out, Yuya Gunji singled to right, and Kotaro Kiyomiya followed with a single to shallow right. After Franmil Reyes struck out, Nomura lined a single to shallow center, scoring Gunji. The inning ended when Kota Yazawa flied out to center.

The Fighters threatened again in the second, loading the bases with one out on singles by Tatsuki Mizuno, Yua Tamiya and Rodolfo Castro. But Sotani escaped when Gunji flied out to first and Kiyomiya lined out to second.

Katoh cruised through the middle innings. He set down the side in order in the third, fourth and fifth innings, needing only 10 pitches in the third and 11 in the fourth. Orix’s best chance came in the sixth, when Haruto Watanabe singled with one out. But Katoh induced a flyout from Yuma Mune and struck out Sho Gibo to end the threat.

The Fighters provided Katoh with insurance in the fifth. With two outs and nobody on, Reyes singled to right. Nomura then drove a 2-1 pitch from Sotani over the wall in left-center for a two-run homer, his third of the season. Yazawa followed with a single, and Chusei Mannami walked, but Mizuno flied out to left to end the inning.

Sotani was charged with the loss, falling to 2-2. He allowed three runs on 10 hits over 4 2/3 innings, striking out three and walking none.

Orix’s bullpen kept the Fighters off the board for the remainder of the game. Kento Kawase tossed two scoreless innings, allowing one hit and striking out one. Raiku Katayama added 1 1/3 perfect innings with one strikeout. Kaito Iriyama faced one batter and recorded an out, and Nobuyoshi Yamada worked 2/3 of an inning, allowing one hit.

Nippon Ham’s offense continued to generate opportunities but could not add to the lead. In the sixth, Gunji singled with two outs but was stranded when Kiyomiya grounded out. In the eighth, Mizuno singled with one out, and Castro walked with two outs, but Taiki Narama struck out to end the inning.

Katoh remained in control through the eighth. He retired the side in order in the seventh on three groundouts, then worked around a two-out single by Noguchi in the eighth, getting Kenya Wakatsuki to ground out to shortstop and Watanabe to ground out to second.

Yanagawa closed it out in the ninth, striking out Mune swinging to start the inning, then getting Gibo and Nishikawa to fly out to center.

The Fighters finished with 12 hits, led by two-hit performances from Gunji, Tamiya, Nomura and Mizuno. Orix managed only three hits, all singles.

Nippon Ham’s previous matchup against Orix on Friday ended in a 4-3 loss, and the Fighters had lost four of their last five games heading into Saturday. The victory snapped a two-game skid.

Orix had won four of its previous five games, including a 3-0 shutout of the Chiba Lotte Marines on Wednesday. The Buffaloes’ offense, which had scored 13 runs in its previous two games, was stifled by Katoh’s efficient pitching.

The attendance was 35,592 at Osaka Dome. The game lasted 2 hours, 46 minutes.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Orix Buffaloes 7, Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters 4. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Orix with a 51.70 percent probability to win. Orix had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of plus-1.5. The total score of three runs went over the over-under line of 6.5.