CarL1 Myrtle Beach Pelicans

Hogs Avoid Sweep, Win Series Finale

Published on May 25, 2005 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Myrtle Beach Pelicans News Release


MYRTLE BEACH, SC- In front of thousands of screaming kids the Myrtle Beach Pelicans came up short in their attempt to sweep the Winston-Salem Warthogs on Wednesday afternoon at Coastal Federal Field. After the Pelicans took the first two games in dramatic fashion the Warthogs put an end to the Myrtle Beach magic, avoided the sweep with a 3-2 win over the Birds.

For the second straight game the Pelicans lit up the scoreboard first. In the bottom of the 1st inning RF Matt Esquivel, who was activated from the disabled list in the morning, rapped a single down the leftfield line, scoring CF Steven Doetsch to give the Pelicans a 1-0 lead. Doetsch led off the inning with a base hit to reach the base paths.

Winston-Salem used a lead-off single from C Carlos Lee coupled with a single off the bat of 2B Micah Schnurstein to put runners at the corners with just one out. The Hogs didn't need a base hit to get on the board as Pelicans starter Kelvin Villa balked, allowing C Carlos Lee to come across with the game-tying run. An inning later the Warthogs would take the lead for good when 1B Leo Daigle drilled an RBI double against the wall in straight away centerfield. Daigle's Carolina League leading 40th RBI gave the Warthogs a 2-1 lead in the 5th.

The score remained 2-1 until the top of the 8th inning when the Warthogs padded their lead with one swing. Hogs LF Ricardo Nanita cranked a homerun over the rightfield wall, his 5th longball of the season, giving the Warthogs a 3-1 edge late in the ballgame.

Trailing by two runs entering the bottom of the 9th the Pelicans inched closer as CF Steven Doetsch unloaded a solo homer over the left-centerfield fence to cut the lead to a single run at 3-2. It was Doetsch's 3rd HR of the season and it added some drama to the final frame, but that's as close as the Pelicans would get as the Warthogs bullpen didn't give up anymore hits and the Warthogs held on to win, 3-2.

Myrtle Beach starter Kelvin Villa (L, 0-2) took the loss after giving up two runs on nine Winston-Salem hits. In the losing effort Villa fanned a personal season-high, eight. Winston-Salem starter Daniel Haigwood (W, 6-1) earned his 6th win with a strong performance on the hill. Haigwood defeated the Pelicans for the second time this season after lasting 5.1 innings that saw him give up one run on five scattered hits. The southpaw struck-out five in the win.

Offensively for Myrtle Beach Doetsch finished the day 2-4 with a homer and two runs scored, while Esquivel also went 2-4 with an RBI. The Pelicans fall to 22-25 with the loss and Winston-Salem jumps to 26-20 with the victory.

After a day off tomorrow the Pelicans will be back in action on Friday night (May 27th) at Coastal Federal Field when they play host to the Wilmington Blue Rocks in game one of a three-game series. First pitch is slated for 7:02 pm. Tickets are available by calling 843-918-6000 or by ordering online at www.myrtlebeachpelicans.com. The 1st 3,000 fans to enter Friday's game will receive a FREE Pelicans baseball card strip courtesy of Pizza Hut!

Capitol Broadcasting Company, Inc. is a diversified communications company which owns and/or operates WRAL-TV, WRAL Digital, WRAL-FM, Microspace, the North Carolina News Network, DTV Plus and Wolfpack Sports Marketing in Raleigh, NC; WJZY-TV and WWWB-TV in Charlotte, NC; WILM-TV in Wilmington, NC; WRAZ-TV and The Durham Bulls in Durham, NC; the Myrtle Beach Pelicans Baseball Club in Myrtle Beach, SC; and various real estate interests in North Carolina.

Check out the Myrtle Beach Pelicans Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Carolina League Stories from May 25, 2005


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central