Sand Gants Sweep Drive

The SavannahSand Gnats swept a doubleheader from the Greenville Drive by scores of 3-2 and9-5 Friday at Historic Grayson Stadium. Savannah’s three-game winning streakmatches their second-half best.

TheGnats (21-27/62-53) scored the winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning ofgame one on a throwing error by reliever TylerLockwood. LF Greg Pron led offwith a double, advanced to third on RF CharleyThurber’s single into left and then scored when Lockwood threw SS Matt Reynolds’ nubber to the backstop.

Thursday’sgame was suspended after one inning after rain halted play and made fieldconditions unplayable.

Domingo Tapia took the ball forSavannah in the resumption of game one, and was effective over six innings ofwork, yielding two runs on one hit and four walks while striking out eight.

TheDrive (22-25/56-61) built a 2-0 lead with single runs against Tapia in thefifth and sixth innings both of which were facilitated by leadoff walks.Neither inning saw a hit to the outfield.

TheGnats evened the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the seventh on a two-run doubleby 2B Brandon Brown.

TheGnats equaled their entire offensive output of game one in the first inning ofgame two. Cole Frenzel swatted athree-run homerun to put the Gnats ahead 3-0. It was the third home run as aGnat for Frenzel. Frenzel led off the third inning with a double and thenscored on C Albert Cordero’s singleinto centerfield to put Savannah in front 4-0.

TheDrive closed to within a run at 4-3 in the top of the fourth against reliever Carlos Vazquez. The big play in theinning occurred when SS Jose Viniciosingled home two runs with a bouncer off the glove of Gnats’ shortstop Yucarybert De La Cruz.

Savannahpulled away from the Drive with a five run bottom of the fourth inning. Thefirst five batters all reached base. The second was scary. Gnats’ shortstop Yucarybert De La Cruz popped a ballinto shallow left. Both Greenville SS Vinicio and LF Keury De La Cruz chased the ball, and slid into each other inshallow left. Both left the game and had to be helped off the field byteammates after the collision. Later in the inning, 3B Dustin Lawley doubled home two runs, and Pron singled up the middleto drive in two runs to establish a 9-3 Savannah lead.

Makinghis first start of the year, RandyFontanez struck out six in his 2.2 innings of work in game two. Reliever Chasen Bradford earned the win as theonly Gnats’ pitcher who followed and did not allow a run to score.