Drive Ride Big Inning to Victory in Second Half Opener

Greenville, SC - The Greenville Drive got off to a good start in the second half of the 2018 season on Thursday night, as they used a five-run fourth inning to defeat the Asheville Tourists 6-3 at Fluor Field.
With the score tied at one in the fourth, the Drive (1-0, 26-44) made their move by notching seven consecutive hits with one out. Back-to-back home runs by Tanner Nishioka and Kervin Suarez off Antonio Santos (1-9) made the score 3-1, and the inning also featured a two-run single from Ryan Fitzgerald and an RBI single from Michael Osinski.
The run support was more than enough for Hildemaro Requena (2-1), who matched his career high with seven strong innings of work. The right-hander allowed three runs on five hits and two walks with four strikeouts.

The Drive took a 1-0 lead on the Tourists (0-1, 27-43) on an RBI single in the first by Pedro Castellanos, and Asheville tied the game in the fourth on a run-scoring hit by Ryan Vilade.
The Tourists threatened in the seventh after RBI hits by Shael Mendoza and Matt McLaughlin, and they put the tying run on base, but Requena coaxed an inning-ending flyout to extinguish the threat.
Juan Florentino and Lukas Young closed out the game with a scoreless inning of relief apiece, and Young notched his sixth save.
Fitzgerald went 3-5 with two RBI to pace the Drive offense. Castellanos, Nishioka, Osinski and Suarez logged two hits apiece.
Friday night's contest at Fluor Field is scheduled for a 7:05 PM first pitch. A pair of southpaws will square off, as Greenville's Enmanuel De Jesus (2-0, 3.44) takes on Asheville's Lucas Gilbreath (4-4, 5.92).
~Greenville Drive~