Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, July 9, 1995 TAG: 9507100108
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: E3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: STAFF REPORT
DATELINE: WILMINGTON, DEL. LENGTH: Medium
Mendy Lopez' throwing error in the top of the 14th inning allowed Chris Sexton to score the winning run as the Salem Avalanche outlasted the Wilmington Blue Rocks 1-0 on Saturday night in Carolina League action.
Sexton walked with one out off Chris Connolly to start the rally and took second on a wild pitch. Vincente Garcia then singled to right center to put runners at the corners with one out. Edgard Velasquez followed with a grounder to third baseman Lopez, who fielded it cleanly and threw home trying to get Sexton, but catcher Mike Sweeney could not handle the throw and Sexton scored the unearned run. Connelly eluded further trouble in the inning by getting Brian Culp to ground out and Pookie Jones to line out.
Bill Bliss (2-2) picked up the win with two scoreless innings of relief, giving up one hit and walking one. Connolly (1-1) suffered the loss, giving up one unearned run in one inning.
Both teams got some outstanding pitching performances. Salem's Mike Saipe pitched the best outing by any Salem starter this season, going nine innings and giving up just one hit while striking out 13 - the most by an Avalanche pitcher this season. Saipe retired the first 16 Blue Rock batters before giving up a one-out single to Oscar Jimenez in the sixth. He retired the last 10 batters he faced before giving way to Matt Aminoff, who pitched three hitless innings.
Glendon Rusch started for Wilmington (10-7) and had a no-hitter going for seven innings before John Giudice led off the eighth with an infield single. John Dickens relieved Rusch to start the ninth and went five innings, allowing just two hits and retiring the last 13 batters he faced.
Salem (12-5) had a chance to win the game off Dickens in the ninth. Velasquez singled to right with one out and Culp, who extended his hitting streak to eight games, singled to put runners at the corners with one out. Dickens thwarted the rally by getting Jones to ground into an inning-ending double play.
Wilmington's best chances came in the 10th and the 13th. It had runners at the corners in the 10th before Aminoff pitched out of the jam and had runners at first and second with one out before Giudice caught a short fly by Anthony Modrano and doubled off the runner at second.
\ see microfilm for box score
Keywords:
BASEBALL
by CNB