Royals strike early, hold off 51s

Shane Costa and Justin Huber hit solo home runs Thursday night to lead the Omaha Royals to a 3-1 victory over the 51s in a Pacific Coast League game at Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, Neb.

Costa hit his third home run of the season with one out in the first inning, and Huber led off the second with his 11th.

Las Vegas (53-59) pulled within 2-1 in the third on Larry Barnes' two-out RBI single. But the Royals (56-57) restored their two-run lead on Mitch Maier's run-scoring double in the fifth.

Winning pitcher Matt Wright (7-3) allowed one run on five hits and two walks in seven innings. He struck out five.

William Juarez (4-6) lost after giving up three runs on five hits and three walks in five innings. He struck out three.

Wilson Valdez and Marshall McDougall each went 2-for-4 for the 51s, and Ryan Shealy was 2-for-4 for the Royals.

The teams play again at 5:05 p.m. today in Omaha.