Tourists back in the win column

GREENVILLE, SC - The Asheville Tourists snapped a five-game losing streak by taking down the Greenville Drive 6-5 on Wednesday night at Fluor Field.

Backed by great starting pitching, Alain Pena (W, 1-3) went the longest of any arm on the Tourists (9-13) staff this year. Tossing in six innings, he held the Drive (10-12) to just one run on two hits and one walk, while racking up seven strikeouts.

Igniting the scoring in the second inning, a wild pitch brought home Kenni Gomez to make it a 1-0 Asheville lead.

Tied in the sixth, the Tourists regained an advantage by plating a trio of runs. With men at the corners, Joseph Sullivan was balked home, making it a 2-1 contest. Then, Cristian Gonzalez and Gomez each tallied hits to score another pair.

Adding to the totals in the seventh inning, Sullivan doubled to center field and scored a run. Later, with the bases loaded and nobody out, Chase Jaworsky hit a sacrifice fly to bring home Tyler Whitaker and bring the score to 6-1.

Greenville went down swinging. They scored four runs after the stretch to draw the contest within one.

Shutting down the eighth and part of the ninth innings, Hudson Leach came out of the bullpen and settled the ship by giving up just one hit. Coming in for the final two outs, Amilcar Chirinos (Sv, 1) slammed the door and left the tying run on second base.

Walker Janek made his return to the diamond after missing all of the last series. He was the designated hitter and went zero-for-three with a run scored and two walks. Asheville nabbed five hits on the night, all from different bats.

These two clubs will face off in a twin bill tomorrow, making up for the postponed game from April 11. The first pitch is set for 4:30 p.m. ET, with the nightcap to follow shortly after.