Columbia, S.C. – Despite an early lead, the Charleston RiverDogs allowed four unanswered runs to the Columbia Fireflies, ultimately falling 4-3 at Segra Park on Friday night.
Charleston struck first in the top of the first when Taitn Gray sent a sacrifice fly to center to score Daniel Pierce and make it 1-0. He has driven in four runs across his last two games.
In the top of the second, the RiverDogs tallied two more runs when Nicandro Aybar scored on a wild pitch and when JD Gonzalez rolled an RBI groundout to second.
Columbia tacked on one in the bottom of the third and another in the fifth to cut the Charleston lead to 3-2. They eventually tied the game in the bottom of the sixth when Hyungchan Um lined an RBI single to center.
The Fireflies took their first lead of the night in the bottom of the seventh when Stone Russell lined an RBI single to center, capping scoring at 4-3.
Jacob Kuhn set the tone on the hill for Charleston, tossing 2.2 innings of one-run ball. Yereny Teus followed with 2.1 innings of strong relief. He allowed one run and fanned four.
Columbia pitching held the RiverDogs bats quiet as the game progressed. In relief, Randy Ramnarace and Hunter Alberini combined for six hittless and shutout innings.
Andy Basora slammed the door in the top of the ninth to earn his first save of the season. Columbia's Henry Ramos sealed the win in thrilling fashion, making a diving catch in left to rob Logan Driscoll of a game-tying double.
With the loss, Charleston fell to 24-25 while Columbia moved to 23-26. The RiverDogs now trail Hickory by five games for first place in the Carolina League South division.
The two return to Segra Park tomorrow for game five of the series with first pitch slated for 6:05 p.m. Coverage on the RiverDogs Broadcast Network begins at 5:50 p.m.