Greenville 3, Savannah 1

The Drive (67-57, 29-25) proved they had s short memory, quickly forgetting about yesterday’s less than stellar performance.  Backed by an a strong effort by the duo of Miguel Celestino and Tyler Wilson on the mound, as well as strong defense, the Drive rebounded for a 3-1 victory over the Savannah Sand Gnats (73-50, 34-20) at Fluor Field. With the win, coupled with an Augusta GreenJackets loss, Greenville increased their lead in the Southern Division’s Wild Card race to a 5.0 game margin. Both team registered multiple hit innings in which they scored their only runs of the night. Savannah started the game of with three singles in a row plating their lone run in the top of the first. Wilfredo Tovar was 2-4 on the night and was brought home by Sand Gnats catcher Alberto Cordero.  After getting the early lead off Celestino (9-5), Savannah only managed four hits over his remaining five innings of work. The right-hander needed only 76 pitches to go 6.0 solid innings on the mound picking up his team-leading ninth win of the season. He did not issue any free passes and struck out four batters before Wilson was summoned from the bullpen. Another right-hander, Wilson came in and picked up his first save of the season. He kept the Sand Gnats off-balanced over 3.0 scoreless innings, surrendering just a pair of hits and a walk, while fanning two.  Greenville did all of their damage in the fifth inning, striking for three runs. The bottom of the order started the rally, with singles from James Kang and Matty Johnson hitting from the eighth and ninth holes, respectively.  Both runners were able to advance into scoring position when right-fielder Rafael Fernandez overran Johnson’s batted ball for an error.  Then with one out Sean Coyle came up and smacked a double to deep left center, scoring both Kang and Johnson, to give the Drive the lead. Drew Hedman then hit a double of his own to center to add an insurance run. Greenville’s four hits in the bottom of the fifth was more than they recorded total during their other seven at bats. Gonzalez Germen walked only one batter in the final 3.0 innings out of the bullpen for Savannah, but his offense was never able to spark a rally. The Drive and Sand Gnats continue their series on Saturday, with first pitch set for 7:05 PM from Fluor Field.  Right-hander Kyle Stroup (5-5, 3.84 ERA) will toe the rubber for Greenville, while Savannah counters with right-hander Tyler Whitenton (4-3, 2.81 ERA). - frpm team press release