Winston-Salem 3, Lynchburg 2
W: Max Beatty (2-3)
L: Argenis Angulo (1-1)
S: None
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (May 15, 2017) – Winston-Salem and Lynchburg were knotted up at two through eight innings at BB&T Ballpark on Monday evening, but a bloop base hit by Ronald Bueno and superb baserunning by Danny Mendick propelled the Dash to a 3-2 walk-off victory.
With one down in the bottom of the ninth, Mendick worked a free pass against Argenis Angulo (1-1) to give Winston-Salem (13-25) a much-needed baserunner. Following a strikeout by Luis Basabe, Bueno came to the plate and popped a 2-0 offering into shallow left field. Two Lynchburg (17-18) charged hard after the high pop up, but neither could come down with it as it plopped into shallow left field. Mendick had taken off on the pitch and was chugging around third by the time the ball crashed to the turf. The Fairport native scored without contention, and Winston-Salem notched its first walk-off win since game two of a twin bill against Carolina on August 11, 2016.
Bueno kickstarted the Dash’s offense in the home half of the sixth with a leadoff double to left-center field. Back-to-back singles by Zack Collins and Telvin Nash brought Bueno around to score for an early 1-0 Winston-Salem lead.
The Dash tacked on another run in the seventh, as Mendick laced a hard-hit RBI single to score Jake Fincher. Over his last 16 contests since April 27, Mendick is hitting .404 (19-for-47) with two homers, 10 RBIs and 12 runs scored.
Lynchburg clawed its way back in the eighth, as Dash reliever Louie Lechich walked the bases loaded before he was lifted from the contest with one down. Max Beatty (2-3) induced a ground out to Nash at first on his first pitch, but Tom rumbled home from third to cut the lead in half. Beatty then uncorked a wild pitch on an 0-2 pitch to Daniel Salters that scored Jodd Carter from third and tied the game at two.
Winston-Salem starter Aron McRee tossed five shutout innings against the Hillcats, allowing just five hits while fanning five and walking one. He has given up just one run over his last two starts spanning 11 innings.
The Dash and Hillcats square off on Tuesday in the second of their four-game series at BB&T Ballpark. Winston-Salem southpaw Tanner Banks (4-1, 3.16 ERA) will do battle against Lynchburg righty Triston McKenzie (3-2, 1.95 ERA). Pregame coverage begins at 6:45 p.m., with first pitch set for 7 p.m. and all the action is available at wsdash.com/broadcast, MiLB.tv and the TuneIn Radio App.
Tuesday marks another Two for $22 deal at BB&T Ballpark, where fans can receive two infield box seats and two Pepsi soft drinks for the price of $22 by calling the Dash at (336) 714-2287 in advance of Tuesday’s game. The four-game set against Lynchburg also includes an Education Day on Wednesday and a Lowes Foods Thirsty Thursday in the finale. For tickets and more information, contact the Dash at (336) 714-2287 or visit wsdash.com.
