Carolina 11, Winston-Salem 10
W: Jon Olczak (1-1)
L: Ryan Riga (0-1)
S: None
ZEBULON, N.C. (May 14, 2017) – Winston-Salem climbed all the way back from Carolina’s six-run fourth inning by scoring eight runs over its final five frames, but the Mudcats plated two in the ninth for an 11-10 walkoff victory to complete the series sweep on Sunday afternoon at Five County Stadium.
Dash right-hander Yelmison Peralta kicked off the bottom of the ninth by fanning Luis Aviles for the first out of the frame. Ryan Riga (0-1) entered the contest and promptly allowed a double to Isan Diaz and a single to Jake Gatewood, who extended his MiLB-best hitting streak to 23 games earlier in the contest.
Lucas Erceg would then reach on an errant throw by Danny Mendick from second that sent Diaz home from third. Riga bounced back to set down Trent Clark on strikes before intentionally walking Troy Stokes, Jr., to load the bases. Mitch Ghelfi followed with a seven-pitch walk that pushed Gatewood in from third and gave Carolina (18-18) a walkoff win.
Winston-Salem (12-25) engineered its comeback effort in the late innings, as Zack Collins smashed his team-leading fourth homer of the season to right-center to inch the score to 9-6 Carolina. The Dash tacked on four more in the eighth on one hit, three walks, two errors and a hit by pitch to momentarily take the lead.
Toby Thomas started the eighth inning by reaching on a fielding error by Carlos Belonis. After Jake Fincher doubled and Luis Basabe was hit by a pitch, Mendick reached on another error by Gatewood, letting Thomas come home and make it 9-7. Collins and Telvin Nash worked bases-loaded walks that tied the game at nine and ended Mudcats’ reliever Freddy Peralta’s afternoon. Jon Olczak (1-1) replaced Peralta on the slab, but would do no better, walking Brady Conlan on five pitches to make it 10-9 Dash.
Conlan went 2-for-4 in the contest with a career-high four RBIs that included a three-run double in the fifth that chased Muddies starter Marcos Diplan from the game with Carolina leading 7-5.
The Mudcats ignited their big fourth inning on a two-out, RBI-single to center by Ghelfi. The two-out damage continued as Aviles greeted Dash reliever Kelvis Valerio with a bases-clearing double before Diaz socked one beyond the right-center field fence to give Carolina a 7-2 lead.
Dash starter Dane Dunning lasted just 3.2 innings, allowing four runs on three hits while striking out seven. Jack Charleston spun two scoreless frames in succession of Valerio, while Peralta hurled 1.1 innings of one-hit ball.
Winston-Salem returns to BB&T Ballpark on Monday to begin an eight-game homestand, welcoming the Lynchburg Hillcats to downtown Winston-Salem for the first of a four-game series. Right-hander Aron McRee (0-5, 4.33 ERA) will face off with Hillcats righty Shane Bieber (0-0, 1.50 ERA) in the opener. All the action will be available online at wsdash.com/broadcast and via the TuneIn Radio App. The Pregame Dash kicks off at 6:45 p.m., with first pitch set for 7 p.m.
Monday also marks the second All-You-Can-Eat for Free Night at BB&T Ballpark, where fans can enjoy all the hamburgers, cheeseburgers and hot dogs they desire through the seventh inning free of charge. Normal ticket prices apply. This four-game stretch against Lynchburg also includes a Two for $22 deal and a Lowes Foods Thirsty Thursday. For tickets and more information, call the Dash at (336) 714-2287 or visit wsdash.com.
