Forbes, Rivera lead Dash past Wood Ducks

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (July 5, 2018) - Ti'Quan Forbes and Laz Rivera combined to go 7-for-8 with two doubles, a triple and two RBIs to lead the Dash to a 7-3 win over Down East on Thursday night at BB&T Ballpark.
Down East (6-9, 41-44) struck in the opening inning when Anderson Tejeda hit a solo home run to give the Wood Ducks an early 1-0 lead.

But, the Winston-Salem (10-4, 51-33) offense responded against Wood Ducks southpaw Yohander Mendez (0-1). After Forbes led off the bottom of the first inning with a single, Rivera doubled to put runners on second and third with nobody out. Gavin Sheets came through later in the inning with a two-out, two-run single to give the Dash a 2-1 lead. 
The Dash added to their lead in the bottom of the second inning, starting the frame with four consecutive hits. Following a single from Mitch Roman, Yeyson Yrizarri tripled to plate the first run of the inning.
Then, Zach Remillard lofted a 1-1 pitch from Mendez over the fence in the right-field corner to extend Winston-Salem's lead to 5-1. After Remillard's homer, Forbes singled, but he was left stranded at third.
However, Down East battled back against Blake Battenfield, who was making his BB&T Ballpark debut. The Wood Ducks tagged Battenfield for two runs early in the inning when Josh Altmann smacked his 16th home run of the season - a two-run shot down the left-field line. Down East loaded the bases on two singles and a walk later in the frame, but Battenfield notched a strikeout and induced a flyout to end the threat.
Kyle Kubat (3-1) entered the game in relief for Battenfield in the fourth inning and proceeded to fire three scoreless frames to earn the victory, lowering his ERA to 1.57 in 21 appearances. 
Meanwhile, the Dash tacked on two more runs in the bottom of the sixth inning. Roman singled to lead off the inning and stole second base, putting himself in scoring position. Mendez got back-to-back outs, but Forbes came through with two outs by lining an RBI double to right field - his fourth hit of the night. Then, after a pitching change, Rivera smashed a double - his third extra-base hit of the night - down the left-field line to bring home Forbes to put Winstion-Salem up 7-3.
Forbes went 4-for-4 with a double and an RBI, and Rivera finished the game 3-for-4 with two doubles, a triple and an RBI.
Lincoln Henzman followed Kubat out of the bullpen and tossed two scoreless innings. Danny Dopico finished the game for the Dash, allowing just one hit in a scoreless ninth inning. Winston-Salem's bullpen combined to throw six scoreless innings to end the game.
Winston-Salem continues its five-game series with Down East on Friday when Dash left-hander Tanner Banks (7-2, 2.75 ERA) toes the rubber against Wood Ducks right-hander Ermerson Martinez (4-7, 4.46 ERA). Pregame coverage begins at 6:45 p.m., and fans can catch all of the action at wsdash.com/broadcast, MiLB.tv and on the TuneIn Radio App.
Friday's game with Down East features postgame fireworks, presented by PTI Fly Easy, and kids can run the bases after the game, powered by New Balance Winston-Salem. The rest of the homestand includes a Chick-fil-A Four Pack Night on Saturday and a Latin American Jersey Day on Sunday. For tickets and more information, call the Dash at (336) 714-2287 or visit wsdash.com.