Sports stats



CarL Fayetteville Woodpeckers

Woodpeckers Stave off Ninth-Inning Rally to Win Third Straight Over Fireflies

June 16, 2023 - Carolina League (CarL)
Fayetteville Woodpeckers News Release


Fayetteville Woodpeckers' Jose Nodal on the mound
Fayetteville Woodpeckers' Jose Nodal on the mound
(Fayetteville Woodpeckers)

Fayetteville, NC - The Fayetteville Woodpeckers (28-33) opened a 4-0 lead on Friday night but were forced to stave off a late Columbia Fireflies (33-28) comeback in the ninth inning, holding on to a 4-3 victory at Segra Stadium. The victory was the third in a row at home and ninth in the last ten games, marking the best ten-game stretch of the regular season.

Zach Cole started the night with a bang, pulling a solo home run deep over the right field wall for a 1-0 lead against Columbia starting pitcher Shane Panzini (L, 1-5). The homer was Cole's team-leading ninth of the season.

In the fourth, Ricardo Balogh smacked the first of his two triples, later scoring on a wild pitch to make it 2-0. He connected for another three-bagger in the bottom of the fifth, driving home Leosdany Molina for a 4-0 advantage.

Making his home debut, Luis Angel Gonzalez (W, 1-0) held the lead firm with five scoreless innings and nine strikeouts. The left-hander and former Chicago Cubs farmhand surrendered two walks and four hits, but worked out of every jam stranding a total of six Columbia runners.

Columbia started to mount a comeback once Jose Nodal entered the game in the top of the sixth. Brennan McNair hit a double to center field that scored Dionmy Salon and cut the Fayetteville lead to 4-1. Salon and Erick Pena followed up with RBI singles in the seventh and chased Nodal from a 4-3 game with the bases loaded.

Manuel Urias (SV, 1) emerged from the bullpen and escaped the jam, stranding three by striking out McNair.

Urias returned for the ninth inning and allowed singles to Daniel Vazquez and Brett Squires that put runners at the corners with one out. With Salon at the plate, Squires broke for second base and baited a throw up the diamond from catcher Sando Gaston. Vazquez sprinted home from third simultaneously and was cut down at the plate on a return feed from Dauri Lorenzo to prevent the tying run. Urias closed the game out after the dramatic infield play, drawing a groundout from Salon to lock up a seven-out save.

The series continues Saturday night with first pitch scheduled for 5:00 PM. Fayetteville is projected to start RHP Tyler Guilfoil (1-1, 2.08 ERA) and Columbia will counter with RHP David Sandlin (4-1, 3.19 ERA).

Check out the Fayetteville Woodpeckers Statistics




Images from this story

Fayetteville Woodpeckers' Jose Nodal on the mound
Fayetteville Woodpeckers' Jose Nodal on the mound
   



Carolina League Stories from June 16, 2023


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 Fayetteville Woodpeckers Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central