Wilson Victorious Over Salem in Slugfest

WILSON, N.C. - The Wilson Warbirds concluded the series against the Salem RidgeYaks, fighting off a late comeback to win 11-9 on Sunday afternoon at Wilson Ballpark.

After falling behind 3-0 in the top of the first inning, Wilson (31-26) rallied to score two runs thanks to an RBI double from Luis Lameda.

Trailing 3-2 in the bottom of the second, Wilson claimed its first lead of the afternoon on an RBI single from Brady Ebel, one of Ebel’s three hits on the day.

Salem (24-33) eventually came back to tie the game at five in the top of the fifth, but Wilson had an immediate response. With one out and runners on first and second, Jadyn Fielder doubled to right field to score a run and give the Warbirds a 6-5 lead.

The bats stayed hot in the sixth and seventh innings. The Warbirds scored three in the sixth to open a 9-5 advantage. Lamed whacked another RBI double, and Filippo Di Turi got on the board with an RBI single.

The exclamation point came in the bottom of the seventh, when Pedro Ibarguen launched his fourth home run of the year, a two-run shot, to left field to hand Wilson an 11-5 lead.

Salem came clawing back with a grand slam in the top of the eighth to bring the game to 11-9, but the Warbirds deployed closer Jose Meneses (S, 4) to record the final five outs and hold on to win.

Ismael Yanez (W, 1-0) earned his first Warbird victory, silencing the Salem bats during the middle innings. Yermain Ruiz (L, 0-1) took the loss for the RidgeYaks.

The Warbirds return to action on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. on the road against the Hill City Howlers. Wilson will return home the following week to take on the Charleston River Dogs. Tickets for the Charleston series are still available at WilsonWarbirds.com or by calling (919) 269-2287.