SAL1 Charleston RiverDogs

Jackson Overpowers R'Dogs in 'Dads 5-1 Series-Opening Win

Published on June 16, 2011 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Charleston RiverDogs News Release


HICKORY, N.C. - Luke Jackson fanned a career-high ten batters over 5.0 sparkling innings, as the Hickory Crawdads dismissed the Charleston RiverDogs, 5-1, in South Atlantic League action Thursday night in front of a crowd of 3,113 fans at L.P. Frans Stadium.

Hickory captured its fifth straight win to move to 38-27 and keep pace in a three-way Northern Division pennant race, while Charleston dropped its fourth in a row to fall to 25-42.

Jackson (2-1) was dominant in his second start of the season against Charleston and just his sixth overall since being called up from extended spring training.

Eight of Jackson's first nine outs were recorded via strikeout, as the 19-year old right-hander kept the score squared at zero before the Crawdads broke through against RiverDogs' starter Nik Turley (3-6) in the bottom of the third.

Jurickson Profar created the first tally with some help from Charleston. The shortstop reached second on a throwing error and swiped third base with one out. Profar got hung up between third and home after an Odubel Herrera strikeout, but was able to scamper down the line for a 1-0 Hickory lead on the second throwing miscue of the inning.

Turley was unable to limit the damage to a single score, as Andrew Clark cracked a double to right field to plate Tomas Telis and Christian Villanueva for a 3-0 Crawdads' advantage.

Charleston inched a run closer in the fifth, as Gary Sanchez solved the Jackson hex with a towering solo home run, his fifth long ball of the season. The RiverDogs had a chance for more, loading the bases for Ramon Flores. Jackson mitigated the harm, though, getting Flores to fly out to the edge of the center field warning track on a payoff pitch.

The fifth frame closed the book on Jackson, who allowed just the one run on three hits and two walks, while fanning a career-high ten batters.

Turley was also lifted after the fifth inning. Notwithstanding the three-run third, the 6-6 southpaw was effective in collecting his fifteen outs, yielding four hits and a walk while striking out five.

Josh Richmond greeted RiverDogs' reliever Danny Burawa rudely in the last of the sixth, lacing a triple to right field to put himself 90 feet away for Jake Skole. Skole did the rest, lofting a sacrifice fly to left to restore the three-run cushion.

The Crawdads' advantage swelled to 5-1 in the bottom of seventh, as they added another insurance run off Burawa. Herrera doubled, and made the trek home two batters later when Villanova blooped a RBI single into shallow right field.

Ben Rowen and Jimmy Reyes turned in yeoman's work out of the Hickory bullpen to erase any thought of a Charleston comeback. The two combined to hurl 4.0 shutout innings of relief, permitting just four hits to hand the RiverDogs their seventh straight road defeat.

The RiverDogs and Crawdads head back to the diamond in the second contest of the four-game series on Friday night at 7:05 p.m. Right-hander Richard Martinez (0-1, 11.66 ERA) is expected to make his return to the mound for Charleston, while fellow righty Cody Buckel (2-2, 2.25 ERA) is slated to go for Hickory.

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South Atlantic League Stories from June 16, 2011


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