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SAL1 Columbia Fireflies

Columbia and Charleston Conclude Tense Series with Wild Finish

May 31, 2018 - South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Columbia Fireflies News Release


CHARLESTON, SC - Columbia and Charleston finished its three-game series with another tight game on Thursday. All three in the series were decided by a single run, but the Fireflies dropped the finale, 5-4. Eight of the 11 tilts between the two Palmetto State rivals in 2018 have been decided by a single score.

It was Charleston (24-28) that won in walk-off fashion. In the bottom of the ninth with a runner at third, reliever Darwin Ramos (L, 0-1) hurled a pitch to the backstop. Catcher Ali Sanchez could not regather the baseball in time and Chris Hess scored the winning run on the wild pitch. Columbia (28-23) still won the three-game series, two games to one.

The Fireflies held a 3-1 lead after six and a half innings. The game turned after Charleston plated three runs in the home half of the seventh. Eduardo Navas provided the big blast: an RBI double that put the RiverDogs ahead by one.

Columbia did, in fact, tie the score the following half inning. Edgardo Fermin led off the eighth with a double against righty Kyle Zurak (W, 2-1). Sanchez scored his teammate with a single moments later. Sanchez finished Thursday's game with a pair of hits and RBIs.

Earlier, Charleston took a 1-0 lead in the third frame. Carlos Vidal singled and advanced one base when the following batter Kyle Holder also drilled a base hit. Vidal scampered to third base when Columbia starter Joe Cavallaro commit an error when the play was over. In an attempt to receive a fresh baseball from the home plate umpire, Cavallaro chucked the ball he was holding towards the first base dugout. Time had not been granted by either umpire and the ball was live. That's when Vidal advanced. The runner next tagged and scored moments later on Oswaldo Cabrera's sacrifice fly.

For a third straight night, though, the Fireflies climbed back and took a lead. A two-run sixth inning did the trick on Thursday. With one out, RiverDogs starter Jio Orozco hit Hansel Moreno on his left foot. Moreno forced Orozco into an error. A routine throw to first to check on the runner turned into an error when the baseball bounced away from the first baseman, Chris Hess. Moreno moved up a base and scored when the next batter, Fermin, drilled a base knock. After Fermin was caught stealing at second, Blake Tiberi singled and advanced to second on an error by right fielder Steven Sensley. Sanchez then vaulted a double to the left-field wall which scored Tiberi. Columbia was ahead, 2-1.

The visitors padded their lead to two runs in the seventh. In that inning, Raphael Gladu simultaneously plated a run with a single up the middle and extended his franchise-best hit streak to 16 games. Gladu got the job done with two outs in the frame.

Fireflies starter Joe Cavallaro posted another quality start - his sixth in eight starts this year. The righty yielded just two earned runs over six innings and punched out five. The right-hander's ERA is 2.22 in nine appearances this season.

On Friday, Columbia starts a three-game series with the Rome Braves at State Mutual Stadium. Left-hander Anthony Kay (2-2, 3.59) is scheduled to face Atlanta Braves rehab starter Mike Soroka (1-1, 3.68 in 3 GS for ATL in 2018). First pitch is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.

You can listen to the action on FOX Sports Radio 1400 AM, ColumbiaFireflies.com and the TuneIn Radio app starting at 6:45 p.m.

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South Atlantic League Stories from May 31, 2018


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