Tourists Take 3 Of 4 From Legends In 6-5 Win
Published on April 6, 2008 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Asheville Tourists News Release
ASHEVILLE - The Tourists won their first series of the year behind a balanced offensive attack, clutch hitting and strong pitching, defeating the Lexington Legends in the final game of their season-opening homestand by a 6-5 score in front of 2,915 fans at McCormick Field.
Five different Tourists hitters drove in runs to lead the attack. Down 2-0 in the third thanks to a two-out Roberto Mena two RBI double an inning earlier, the Tourists rallied back in the 3rd to take the lead. With one out, Warren Schaffer and Michael Mitchell singled. Helder Velasquez's double plated Schaffer to cut the Legends' lead in half. Two hitters later, Darin Holcomb's two-out double drove in a pair of runs to give the Tourists a 3-2 advantage.
The Tourists added a run an inning later when Schaffer doubled to score Brian Lapin, making the score 4-2. However, the lead would not hold, as Max Sapp drilled a two-out double in the top of the fifth to score a pair of runs and tie the game for Lexington.
Asheville would charge back in the bottom half of the inning when David Christiansen singled with two outs to score Brian Rike. The Tourists picked up a much-needed insurance run when Rike's two-out single scored Warren Schaffer, who reached three times on the day, to give the T's a 6-4 edge.
The Legends put a rally together with two outs in the ninth. Mena hit a home run to left, Matt Cusick walked and Craig Corrado singled. Russell Taylor settled down to strike out Collin DeLome looking to end the ballgame and preserve the Tourists victory.
Bruce Billings (1-0), Asheville's starter, picked up the win with 5 solid innings, allowing 4 runs and striking out six. The Asheville bullpen slammed the door shut on Lexington, with Matthew Reynolds and Craig Baker combining for three scoreless frames before Taylor picked up his first save of the year in the ninth.
Jacob Leonhardt (0-1) picked up the loss for the Legends in relief, who were led offensively by Mena, coming off the bench to go 2-4 with a double, home run and 3 RBI's.
The Tourists begin an eight-game road trip tomorrow night in Kannapolis. First pitch against the Intimidators is 7:05. Asheville will send Sheng An-Kuo to the hill for his first start of the year and he'll face the righty Justin Klipp from the Intimidators. The Tourists return home on Tuesday, April 15 for a seven-game homestand. April 15 is $5 ticket night against the West Virginia Power. All seats in the ballpark are available at the gate for just five dollars.
For more information about season tickets, mini-plans and all premium seating at McCormick Field, contact the Tourists front office at (828) 258-0428.
South Atlantic League Stories from April 6, 2008
- Drive, Intimidators Split Twinbill - Greenville Drive
- Opening Day Is Here - Charleston Dirty Birds
- Savannah At Columbus Doubleheader Recap - Columbus Catfish
- Dandy Dads Sweep Doubleheader - Hickory Crawdads
- Crawdads Blank Power, Twice - Charleston Dirty Birds
- Tourists Take 3 Of 4 From Legends In 6-5 Win - Asheville Tourists
- BlueClaws Offense Falters Once Again In 5-1 Loss To Lake County - Jersey Shore BlueClaws
- Braves Notch First Win Of The Season - Rome Emperors
- RiverDogs Can't Complete Rome Sweep - Charleston RiverDogs
- Suns game vs. Shorebirds Postponed - Hagerstown Suns
- 'Birds, Suns Postponed - Delmarva Shorebirds
- Riverdogs Sweep Braves - Rome Emperors
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.
