Ali Sanchez Drives in Three, Columbia Outlasted in Extras
Published on April 30, 2017 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Columbia Fireflies News Release
HICKORY, NC - The first two games in the series between Columbia and Hickory featured plenty of offense and Saturday night was no exception. After 17 combined runs and 24 hits, Hickory scored the winner in the bottom of the 10th to secure a 9-8 victory. Both Ali Sanchez and Gene Cone knocked in three runs at L.P. Frans Stadium.
The two squads mashed four more home runs on Saturday night, too. That was on the heels of four that left the yard on Friday. Factoring in Desmond Lindsay's blast on Thursday, that's now nine long balls in the three-game series.
Columbia (12-12) had the lead early in the game. After being added to the roster earlier in the day, 18-year-old shortstop prospect Andres Gimenez was slotted second in the batting order and crushed a solo home run in his first at-bat in the first inning. The Fireflies' lead grew to 3-0 in the next frame when Cone drilled a double into the left-center field gap. That hit plated Lindsay and Milton Ramos.
Hickory belted two solo homers in the bottom of the second to inch back within a run, but the visitors answered in the fourth. After Jay Jabs and Lindsay both reached safely, a passed ball by catcher Alex Kowalczyk enabled the pair to move into scoring position. Sanchez's groundout scored Jabs and then Ramos doubled home Lindsay. Columbia led, 5-2.
Yanio Perez crushed his second dinger of the night in the bottom half of the fourth, tying the score at 5-5. Hickory (9-14) took its first lead of the game with two more runs in the following frame.
The Fireflies then exploded for three in the sixth. The first three batters reached safely and Sanchez drove in a pair with a base hit. Two hitters later, Cone knocked in one more and the visitors were ahead, 8-7.
The Crawdads forced extras with a run in the bottom of the ninth and Preston Scott drove in Perez with a double in the 10th to seal the win.
The series finale between the Fireflies and Crawdads is Sunday at 3:00 p.m. from L.P. Frans Stadium. Right-handed ace Jordan Humphreys (4-0, 1.42) starts for the Fireflies and faces righty Demarcus Evans (0-2, 2.79) for the Crawdads.
South Atlantic League Stories from April 30, 2017
- Kieboom Hits Three Homers, Suns Roll 22-4 - Lexington Legends
- Suns Set SAL Record with 30 Hits in 22-4 Romp at Lexington - Hagerstown Suns
- Wild Pitches and Passed Balls Haunt GreenJackets - Augusta GreenJackets
- Offense Shines, Humphreys Deals in Win - Columbia Fireflies
- Drive Roll Past GreenJackets on Sunday - Greenville Drive
- Shorebirds Conga Line Late for Comeback Win - Delmarva Shorebirds
- RiverDogs Let Late Lead Slip, Settle for Series Split with Shorebirds - Charleston RiverDogs
- Braves Fall to West Virginia 8-2 - Rome Emperors
- April Ends with a Dud; T's Shutout Again - Asheville Tourists
- Power Take Finale in Rome, 8-2 - Charleston Dirty Birds
- Sanchez, Arauz Combine for Three-Hit Shutout in 2-0 Win - Jersey Shore BlueClaws
- Hansen Flirts with No-No, Suffers Hard-Luck Loss - Kannapolis Cannon Ballers
- Ali Sanchez Drives in Three, Columbia Outlasted in Extras - Columbia Fireflies
- Hagerstown Wins in 11 Innings, 5-4 - Lexington Legends
- : Greenville Drives Past GreenJackets With - Augusta GreenJackets
- Green, Bullpen Dominant in RiverDogs Win over Delmarva - Charleston RiverDogs
- RECAP: 'Dogs Inch Past Shorebirds Late - Delmarva Shorebirds
- Sloppy Start Leads to 7-4 Loss - Asheville Tourists
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- Drive Game Story (4/29): Shawaryn Shines in Drive Win on Saturday - Greenville Drive
- RECAP - Claws Come Back for 4-3 Saturday Win on Sandberg SAC Fly - Jersey Shore BlueClaws
- GAME RECAP: KAN 3, LWD 4: BlueClaws Rally with 4 Runs over Final 3 Innings - Kannapolis Cannon Ballers
- RiverDogs to Bro Down, Serve up Some Mayo, be Tempted by the Dark - Charleston RiverDogs
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