Sports stats



SAL1 Charleston RiverDogs

R'Dogs Rack Up Strikeouts, Beat Drive 5-3 To Move Into 1st Place Tie

April 21, 2011 - South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Charleston RiverDogs News Release


CHARLESTON, S.C. - Zach Nuding won his second straight decision and fanned a career-high eight batters as the RiverDogs matched a season-high with 14 total strikeouts to defeat the Greenville Drive, 5-3, in South Atlantic League action Thursday night in front of a crowd of 3,822 fans at Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park.

Charleston improved to 8-7 with their second two-game winning streak of the season, good for a first place tie with Greenville and the Asheville Tourists.

J.R. Murphy and Rob Segedin, two of Charleston's most consistent threats over the early part of the season, jumpstarted a 3-run rally to break the contest open in the fourth.

Murphy chopped a one-out single through the middle and made the 270 foot trek home for a 2-0 lead when Segedin drilled a one-hop triple off the fence in left-centerfield. Kelvin De Leon continued the onslaught off Drive starter Miguel Celestino (0-1), lofting a deep fly ball just over the outstretched arm of left fielder Brandon Jacobs for a run-scoring double. Celestino looked as if he might limit the damage after inducing a groundout, but Kelvin Castro hit a laser up the middle for a clutch two-out hit, driving in De Leon for a 4-0 cushion.

Rain, hail, and strong winds delayed the start time by an hour and fifteen minutes but Nuding and Celestino displayed no ill effects from the long wait in the early going.

The RiverDogs were set down in order over the first two innings but pieced together three singles to plate the game's first run in the third. De Leon pulled a base hit through the hole on the left side, Castro plugged the hole on the right side one out later, and Slade Heathcott ripped a line drive to right field to score De Leon.

The Drive finally revved up the engine to get on the scoreboard in the fifth. Nuding (2-0) issued a one-out walk to Jacobs and Sean Coyle made him pay for the free pass, walloping a two-run homer just inside the left-field foul pole to slice the RiverDogs lead in half, 4-2.

Nuding overpowered the Drive in his five innings of work, tallying his eight strikeouts largely on the strength of a sizzling fastball. The 6-4 Texan surrendered only two base hits and a walk before giving way to Wilton Rodriguez in the sixth.

Rodriguez recorded a scoreless opening frame but could not translate that success to the seventh. Christian Vazquez powered an impressive opposite field jack over the right-centerfield wall for his second home run of the season, bringing Greenville within a run at 4-3.

Heathcott scored a run for the seventh consecutive game as the RiverDogs responded with a tally of their own in the last of the seventh. The speedy centerfielder drew a leadoff walk and cruised home to score when Gary Sanchez scorched a one-out single to the warning track deep in the right-centerfield gap.

Danny Burawa slammed the door shut, logging three dominant innings to garner his second save of the year. The New York native yielded just two base hits and joined Nuding in setting a new watermark for strikeouts in a single game with five.

The RiverDogs and Drive play game four of the five-game set on Friday at 7:05 pm. Right-hander Shane Greene (1-2, 5.40 ERA) is expected to take the hill for Charleston versus southpaw Manuel Rivera (2-1, 2.40 ERA) of Greenville.

Check out the Charleston RiverDogs Statistics



South Atlantic League Stories from April 21, 2011


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.

Other Recent Charleston RiverDogs Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central