The Blue Crabs picked up their first win of the 2009 season on Saturday night, in front of an enthused 4,917 fans at Regency Furniture Stadium.  MLB veteran John Halama was impressive in 5 1/3 innings to pick up the win, and the Blue Crabs cause was helped by solo home runs by Jeremy Owens and Chuck Jeroloman.  Jim Ed Warden retired the Ducks in order in the ninth inning for the save, nailing down the 4-2 victory.

The Blue Crabs will next be in action Sunday afternoon at home at Regency Furniture Stadium against the Long Island Ducks for the final game of this four game season-opening series.  First pitch is at 2:05 p.m, and the stadium gates will open at 1 p.m.  Scheduled starters are RHP B.J. LaMura for Long Island, and RHP Kenny Rayborn for Southern Maryland.

Blue Crabs starter Halama, a veteran of nine Major League seasons, had a final line of five hits, two runs both of which were earned, five strikeouts and two walks.  The effort comes after Halama went 4-1 with a 1.91 ERA in eight starts to begin last season with the Crabs, before finishing out the year in the Cleveland Indians organization.

Owens’ home run came with two out in the fourth inning, and Jeroloman led off the fifth with a round-tripper of his own.  Both homers were to left field.  The Blue Crabs scored three times total in the fifth, as Steve Doetsch chipped in an RBI single, and Travis Garcia picked up his sixth RBI of the season already in just three games, with an RBI sac-fly to left, scoring Doetsch.

The two runs for the Ducks came from a Preston Wilson RBI single in the fourth inning, which gave the visitors from Central Islip, NY a 1-0 lead at the time.  Victor Rodriguez contributed an RBI groundout to third in the sixth off reliever Edward Rodriguez with the bases loaded, runners inherited from starter John Halama.  That would end the scoring for the night however, as Rodriguez threw 1.2 innings, followed by a scoreless inning of relief by Mike James in the eighth, which paved the way for Warden to slam the door and pick up the save in the ninth.

Long Island southpaw starter Randy Leek was tagged with the loss, with a final line of five innings, six hits, four runs (three of which were earned), three strikeouts and a walk.