Despite a game-tying rally in the fifth, the Charleston RiverDogs could not hold on, falling 9-3 to the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers in front of 5,671 fans at Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park.
For the second straight night, the Cannon Ballers struck first when Jaden Fauske lined a sacrifice fly to left and Stiven Flores rolled an RBI groundout to short to make it 2-0 in the first.
Charleston responded in the bottom of the third when Caden Bodine lined a sacrifice fly of his own to right that cut the deficit to 2-1.
The RiverDogs evened the score in the bottom of the fifth when Logan Driscoll roped an RBI double down the right-field line, making it 2-2.
Kannapolis tacked on seven runs over the final four innings, before the RiverDogs tacked on one more in the ninth on an RBI double from Derek Datil, capping scoring at 9-3.
With the loss, Charleston fell to 22-17 while Kannapolis moved to 18-21. After a day off on Monday, the RiverDogs begin a six-game series versus the Hickory Crawdads in Winston Salem. Coverage begins at 6:15 p.m. with first pitch slated for 6:30 on the RiverDogs Broadcast Network.
Ballpark Fun
This Sunday at The Joe felt like a trip to a galaxy far, far away.
For Star Wars Day, fans fully leaned into the theme. Star Wars characters, themed t-shirts, costumes, and even lightsabers filled the ballpark as fans of all ages dressed up and joined in on Star Wars-themed promotions throughout the game. Pregame Jedi training had lightsabers swinging as kids got the chance to train like Jedi before first pitch.
On the field, the RiverDogs wore special Star Wars jerseys, which fans bid on throughout the game before auction winners took home the signed jerseys after the final out.
After the game, kids ran the bases as music played through the stadium, capping off one of the best Family Sundays yet.