Lead Slips Away Yet Tourists Walk Off In Extras

By Doug Maurer

May 30, 2015

ASHEVILLE, NC-- Saturday night was a roller-coaster ballgame between the Asheville Tourists and the Augusta GreenJackets. Asheville let a six-run lead slip away late, then used a comeback of their own to record a 13-12 walk-off win in 11 innings.

Augusta jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the top of the first. Johneshwy Fargas led off the ballgame with a Home Run down the left field line. Asheville responded with a run in the third. Shane Hoelscher plated Sean Dwyer on a sacrifice fly to center.

The fourth inning was a game of its own. Augusta scored three in the top half highlighted by a Jonah Arenado RBI single and a Matt Pare two-run Homer. Asheville countered with nine, yes nine runs in the bottom of the frame. Max White led off with a Home Run to right. With one out, the Tourists were able to string together four straight hits and tie the game 4-4.

An RBI groundout by Forrest Wall followed by a wild pitch made it 6-4. Augusta then walked the next four batters to force in a run. Dom Nunez capped the marathon inning with a three-run single to right. Asheville sent 14 batters to the plate.

Leading 10-4, the Tourists handed the game over to their bullpen in the seventh. The GreenJackets used some timely hitting to erase the deficit. In the top of the seventh, T. Relaford cut Asheville's lead in half with a three-run Home Run to left. In the eighth, Augusta tied it when Andrew Cain blasted a three-run Home Run to center.

The visitors then jumped in front 12-10 with two runs in the top of the ninth. Josh Michalec hit John Riley with the bases loaded and Pare brought in a run with a fielder's choice. The Tourists rallied in the bottom of the ninth to force extras when Hoelscher clubbed a two-run double to center.

In the bottom of the 11th, Drew Weeks and Max White hit back-to-back one out singles. Wes Rogers then singled into left plating Weeks for the game winning run. Asheville's Omar Carrizales finished 5-for-6 with two doubles and a walk while Nunez went 4-for-6. The Tourists totaled 20 hits in the game.