FUKUOKA (Interstat) — Yugo Maeda tossed seven strong innings and Isami Nomura hit two home runs as the SoftBank Hawks defeated the visiting Yakult Swallows 8-1 on Saturday afternoon at Fukuoka Yahuoku! Dome.

Maeda (4-0) allowed one earned run on three hits with seven strikeouts across seven innings. Nomura finished 2-for-4 with two homers and three RBIs. Kensuke Kondoh added a two-run homer in the third inning.

Yakult struck first in the second on Yasutaka Shiomi’s solo home run. SoftBank answered with Kondoh’s blast in the third. The Hawks broke the game open with three runs in the sixth, highlighted by Nomura’s solo shot and a sacrifice fly. Nomura struck again in the seventh with a two-run homer. SoftBank added a run in the eighth on a bases-loaded walk.

Taichi Yamano (7-2) took the loss, allowing five earned runs in 5 2/3 innings. Attendance was 40,122. Game time was 2 hours, 58 minutes.

SoftBank improved to 37-26, while Yakult fell to 33-29-1.