Fayetteville Ekes Out Another Close One

Scott Wingo stole second and later scored in the fifth

COLUMBIA - The Fayetteville Swampdogs continued their mastery over the Columbia Blowfish in close ballgames with an 8-7 victory Tuesday night at Capital City Stadium.

The Swampdogs (6-4) move to 9-1 against Columbia (1-10) on the season, five of those wins by three runs or fewer.

In a wild night that featured fifteen runs, twenty-one hits, and eighteen runners left on base, Fayetteville reliever Wes Dutton (E. Connecticut St. 5-0) picked up the win despite allowing the first three batters he faced to reach base. Dutton finished the night giving up a run on two hits and a walk. John Long (Liberty 1-2) got the loss after giving up two runs on two hits in 1.1 innings. Greg Robinson (Wright St) pitched a shutout ninth inning for his first save of the season.

The scoring frenzy began in the second inning for Fayetteville. Matt Kole (Austin Peay) doubled to right field, scoring Tanner Biagini (VMI). Airlon Vinson (Mount Olive) then brought Kole around with an RBI single to make it 2-0 Swampdogs.

The Blowfish took the lead in the bottom half of the inning, however. With runners on first and third and two outs, Matt Williams (Liberty) laced a single into left field to score Richard Mounce (Clemson). Fayetteville starter Jhonny Montoya (Faulkner) then walked Scott Wingo (South Carolina) to load the bases. Matt Leeds (College of Charleston) came through in the clutch, driving a two-run single to left center that scored Derek Smith (Charleston Southern) and Williams to give Columbia a 3-2 lead.

Fayetteville countered with a three-run inning of their own in the fourth. Vinson hit an RBI groundout that scored Biagini to tie the game. Then, with runners on the corners, Eric Grabe (Daytona St) hit an RBI single to score Kole. Michael Niemann (Delta St) followed with another single up the middle to plate Austin Lasprilla (Angelo St) and give the Swampdogs a 5-3 lead.

Wingo narrowed the gap in the fifth after getting hit by a pitch, stealing second, reaching third on a wild pitch, and then scoring on a Leeds groundout. Halfway through the game, Fayetteville held a 5-4 advantage.

The Swampdogs added to their lead in the seventh inning. Columbia reliever Brandon Miller (South Carolina) allowed the first three batters to reach base before being relieved by Long. Long then walked Kole with the bases loaded to give Fayetteville a 6-4 lead before retiring the next three batters to escape the jam.

Catlin Carter (UNC-Asheville) led off the bottom of the inning with a hard grounder to third that was misplayed by Biagini. Williams followed with an RBI single to score Carter, moved to third on Wingo's single, and came around to score himself on Leeds's RBI base hit. Dutton then walked Branfry Arias (Tusculum) to load the bases, and Jeff Jefferson (Liberty) followed with a sacrifice fly to center field that scored Wingo, giving Columbia a 7-6 lead.

The Swampdogs rallied in the eighth after Brendan Rowland (Albany) scored Grabe with an RBI double and Nathaniel Lami (South Alabama) brought Rowland around to make it 8-7.

Both starters struggled, Montoya gave up four earned runs in five innings, while Columbia's Justin Hopper (South Carolina) gave up five runs on five hits in four innings.

Notes: The Blowfish still have not won in the month of July and fall to 0-9 under Gronkiewicz.... It is the seventh consecutive loss for Columbia in a game decided by two runs or fewer... Leeds had four RBIs, he leads the team with 23. The next closest Blowfish hitter is Shawn Glover with 14... Both teams face each other again tomorrow at JP Riddle Stadium in Fayetteville. First pitch will be at 7:05 pm.