Mistakes Cost Winston in Series Finale
August 4, 2010 - Carolina League (CarL1)
Winston-Salem Dash News Release
WINSTON-SALEM, NC (AUGUST 4, 2010) - Nick Francis drove in three runs with a homer and a triple to lead Wilmington to a 9-5 win over the Dash on Wednesday night at BB&T Ballpark. The Blue Rocks snapped a tie game in the seventh when a passed ball allowed a run to score, then plated three late runs to salvage their series in Winston-Salem.
For the second straight night, Wilmington (21-18, 53-56) jumped out to an early advantage. Christian Colon hit a solo home run off Terry Doyle to put the Rocks on top 1-0. Two batters later, Ernesto Mejia reached on a throwing error by Mike Richard. A good throw would have ended the inning, but the miscue allowed Francis to come to the plate. After falling behind in the count 3-0, Francis blasted a Doyle fastball over the centerfield fence for a two-run homer that gave Wilmington a 3-0 lead.
The Dash (19-19, 62-46) scored a pair in the bottom of the inning to stay in the ballgame. Kenny Williams, Jr. led off with a double against Will Smith and scored on an RBI single by Jon Gilmore. Winston trimmed its deficit to one run on a Josh Phegley RBI base hit later in the inning.
Smith's struggles continued in the third. Seth Loman was hit by a pitch on the right arm with one out. It was the 25th time Loman has been drilled this season, snapping a 21-year-old Carolina League record once held by former Winston-Salem Spirit Rusty Crockett. Phegley followed with a single before Ozzie Lewis hit a two-run double to the left-center gap to give the Dash a 4-3 lead.
A strange play led to another Winston run. Jose Martinez hit a comebacker to the mound. Smith fielded the ball and ran toward Lewis, who was caught too far off second base. After throwing to Rey Navarro, Smith was deemed to have obstructed Lewis' path to third base. Lewis was close to being tagged out, but instead was awarded third base on defensive interference with Martinez safe at first. Kyle Shelton brought Lewis home with a double to left, extending Winston's lead to 5-3.
The Blue Rocks tied the game almost immediately, as Rene Oriental and Juan Rivera led off the fourth with singles. Adrian Ortiz sacrificed both men into scoring position before Colon drove in Oriental with a groundout to second. Wil Myers tied the game at five with an RBI single to centerfield.
The score held until the top of the seventh, when Charlis Burdie (2-2) relieved Doyle. Salvador Perez doubled with one out and moved to third on a fielder's choice. A passed ball charged to Phegley allowed Perez to score and pushed Wilmington ahead 6-5.
The Blue Rocks added three more in the ninth inning against Brandon Kloess. Mejia hit an RBI double before Francis tripled home a run. Francis scored the final run of the night on a sacrifice fly.
The relief combination of Ivor Hodgson, Kevin Chapman, and Barry Bowden shut out the Dash over the game's final three innings to win it for Wilmington. Smith (1-1) picked up his first Carolina League victory despite allowing five runs on nine hits in six innings.
Burdie was dealt the loss after allowing the tiebreaking run to score in the seventh.
The Dash starts a four-game series with Frederick on Thursday to finish off the home stand. RHP Stephen Sauer (6-8, 5.03) opposes RHP Luis Noel (2-1, 5.95) in a 7 p.m. start. The webcast of the game begins at 6:45 on www.wsdash.com .
Fans may purchase tickets for every Dash game this season by calling the Dash at (336) 714-2287 or visiting www.wsdash.com .
Carolina League Stories from August 4, 2010
- Birds Jump on K-Tribe Pen, Take Finale - Myrtle Beach Pelicans
- Birds Jump on K-Tribe Pen, Take Finale - Myrtle Beach Pelicans
- Francis & Colon Homer, Wilmington Avoids Sweep - Wilmington Blue Rocks
- Mistakes Cost Winston in Series Finale - Winston-Salem Dash
- Big Inning Dooms Frederick in Finale - Frederick Keys
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- Sox Take Series with 7-3 Wednesday Win - Salem Red Sox
- Hillcats and Nationals Postponed - Lynchburg Hillcats
- Play Suspended with Nats up Big - Potomac Nationals
- Chris Sale Promoted to White Sox - Winston-Salem Dash
- Lynchburg Hillcats Game Notes - Lynchburg Hillcats
- Fifth straight loss costs Rocks first place - Wilmington Blue Rocks
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