Record
4-2
53-56 (overall)
22-21 (second half)

The Dash had a solid week, winning their series against the Drive and opening their series against the BlueClaws with a victory. During this time frame, the Dash outscored their opponents by a score of 29-22, Samuel Zavala had a 1.015 OPS, and Tommy Vail pitched four shutout innings to build on his great resume at this level.

August 7: Greenville Drive 12, Winston-Salem Dash 8 (10 innings)
Surprisingly, this was a pretty low-scoring game after regulation, as the score was 3-3 after nine innings. Dash starter Shane Murphy had a decent game, allowing three runs on six hits in five innings. When he left the game, the Dash trailed by a score of 3-0, but the offense woke up late. In the fifth, a productive out by Jacob Burke got the Dash on the board. Still trailing by two in the eighth, a wild pitch allowed Samuel Zavala to race home, and a productive out by William Bergolla tied the game. Meanwhile, the Dash bullpen was phenomenal, as the relievers had no margin for error to send the game into extra innings, but they were up to the task. However, things took a turn for the worst in the 10th inning. In the top of the 10th, Greenville put nine on the board, so despite a five-run rally that included homers by Zavala and Wes Kath, the Dash fell short.

GAME MVPs
Samuel Zavala (CF) 1-for-4, HR, 2 RBI
Wes Kath (3B) 1-for-5, HR, 3 RBI
Peyton Pallette (RHRP) 2 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 BB, 2 K

August 9: Winston-Salem Dash 5, Greenville Drive 2
Winston-Salem gave itself an early cushion, and the pitchers did not take their feet off the gas pedal. Rikuu Nishida led off the bottom of the first with a single and a stolen base. After Kath was hit by a pitch, they advanced 90 feet on a wild pitch. A sacrifice fly by Ryan Galanie and a single by Caden Connor put Winston-Salem ahead by two. In the second, a leadoff walk to Samuel Zavala, a stolen base, and an RBI single by William Bergolla put the Dash ahead by three. Meanwhile, Dash starter Aldrin Batista struck out seven in four innings, and he only allowed one run on five hits, all of which were singles. The bullpen combined to allow only one run in five innings.

GAME MVPs
Aldrin Batista (RHSP) 4 IP, 1 ER, 5 H, 2 BB, 7 K
Nick Altermatt (RHRP) 2 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 BB, 2 K
Rikuu Nishida (CF) 1-for-3, 2 BB, 3-for-3 stolen bases
William Bergolla (CF) 1-for-3, BB, RBI, 3-for-3 stolen bases
Caden Connor (1B) 2-for-4, 2 RBI
Colby Smelley (C) 2-for-3, BB, RBI

August 10: Winston-Salem Dash 3, Greenville Drive 2 (Game 1) (7 innings)
In the opener of Saturday’s doubleheader, an early spurt of offense helped the Dash come out on top.

William Bergolla and Wes Kath hit back-to-back singles in the first, and Bergolla scored on a sacrifice fly by Ryan Galanie. The Dash added another run in the second, when Weston Eberly hit an RBI single to drive in Casey Saucke, who had led off the inning with a single.

Dash starter Lucas Gordon got through his first 2 2/3 innings without any major issues, but the Drive put a two-out rally together to tie the game. A double, a walk, and a two-run double resulted in the game being tied at two after three.

Eddie Park led off the bottom of the fourth with a double, and after back-to-back productive outs by Samuel Zavala and Eberly, the Winston-Salem was back in front. Relievers Ben Beutel and Jared Kelley were very reliable, combining to pitch three scoreless innings to protect the 3-2 lead.

GAME MVPs
Eddie Park (RF) 1-for-2, BB, 2B
Weston Eberly (C) 1-for-1, 2 RBI
Wes Kath (3B) 2-for-3
Jared Kelley (RHRP) 2 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 1 BB, 2 K

August 10: Greenville Drive 4, Winston-Salem Dash 3 (Game 2) (7 innings)
Despite some early fireworks, the Dash failed to complete a sweep in the doubleheader.

The Dash wasted no time getting started in the bottom of the first, as Jordan Sprinkle drew a leadoff walk to set the table. Loidel Chapelli singled to put two on with no outs, and Ryan Galanie launched a three-run blast to put the Dash ahead.

That was the last time the Dash scored in this game, so the pitching staff had to make sure those three runs were enough. This time, the pitchers were not up to the task. Dash starter Jake Bockenstedt’s first two innings went quite well, but he allowed two in the third and two in the fourth. Bockenstedt was removed with one out in the fourth. One of the four runs he allowed was unearned, and on the bright side, he tallied four strikeouts. However, despite another strong game by the bullpen, Winston-Salem came up short.

GAME MVP
Ryan Galanie (DH) 1-for-3, HR, 3 RBI

August 11: Winston-Salem Dash 5, Greenville Drive 0
The Dash finished their series against the Drive on a high note, as the pitching staff delivered a three-hit shutout en route to a convincing victory.

In the first, Kath and Galanie each picked up an RBI double to propel the Dash ahead early on. The score remained 2-0 until the fourth, when Weston Eberly hit an RBI single. Eberly proceeded to add a two-run homer in the sixth for his first blast of the season. Eberly has only had 77 at-bats this season, but it is nice to see him on the board in the homer category after this nice game.

Dash starter Tommy Vail has been on fire, and his ERA with Winston-Salem is down to 0.64 after four more shutout innings. The bullpen also pitched five shutout innings, so the final outcome if this game was hardly ever in question.

GAME MVPs
Weston Eberly (C) 3-for-4, HR, 3 RBI
Tommy Vail (LHSP) 4 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 3 BB, 0 K

August 13: Winston-Salem Dash 5, Jersey Shore BlueClaws 2
The Dash wrapped up the week with a solid victory to open their series against Jersey Shore.

Dash starter Shane Murphy was on top of his game, only allowing three hits (all singles) in five shutout innings. When Murphy left the game, Winston-Salem had a 3-0 lead, and that was largely thanks to a three-run homer by Galanie. In the sixth, after Murphy left the game, Rikuu Nishida added a pair to Winston-Salem’s lead with a single. Although the BlueClaws put two on the board later on, that rally was not nearly enough to pull off a comeback.

GAME MVPs
Ryan Galanie (C) 1-for-5, HR, 3 RBI
Shane Murphy (LHSP) 5 IP, 0 R, 3 H, 1 BB, 2 K
Rikuu Nishida (2B) 3-for-5, 2 RBI, stolen base
William Bergolla (SS) 2-for-3, 2 BB

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Jordan Sprinkle photo: JordanSprinkle (IG)