ASHEVILLE, N.C. — For eight innings Friday night, this had the makings of one of the best-pitched games of the season at HomeTrust Park. Then the ninth inning arrived and it all fell apart.
Twelve Winston-Salem batters came to the plate in the top of the ninth. Seven runs scored. A game that Parker Smith had dominated became a 7-3 Dash win that dropped Asheville to one game ahead in the Southern Division.
Smith was brilliant. The right-hander retired hitters with ease for six scoreless innings, scattering five hits and walking just one. Jackson Wells followed and was even better to start, retiring six straight batters across the seventh and eighth with three strikeouts. Through eight innings, neither team had recorded an extra-base hit. The game was on pace to be the quickest and lowest-scoring of the season.
Asheville had scratched together three runs on timely hitting but was also its own worst enemy, grounding into five double plays on the night to repeatedly kill potential rallies. Jack Moss grounded out to score Caden Powell in the first for a 1-0 lead. Singles from Zach Daudet and Alejandro Nunez set the table in the fourth, and John Garcia singled to score a run for his fifth RBI of the series. Brandon Nigh grounded into a double play that did score Nunez from third to make it 3-0, one of the few times a double play still worked in Asheville's favor.
Then came the ninth.
Wells walked Ryan Burrowes, then walked Jeral Perez, and advanced both on a wild pitch. He struck out George Wolkow in a major moment, but then walked Kaleb Freeman to load the bases. James Taussig singled to score one. Wells was pulled for Connor Steinbaugh with the bases still loaded and the game on the line.
Steinbaugh couldn't stop it. Arxy Hernandez doubled to clear two runs and tie the game. It was the first extra-base hit of the night for either team. Ely Brown followed with a bases-clearing double to make it 5-3. Eddie Park singled to put runners on the corners. Kyle Lodise singled to score another. Lodise stole second, and Ryan Burrowes lofted a ball down the right field line that bounced right in front of Cesar Hernandez directly on the line and ricocheted into the Dash bullpen for an automatic double. 7-3 before Steinbaugh finally got the third out.
Asheville drew a leadoff walk in the bottom of the ninth but grounded into another double play to effectively end it.
Smith deserved far better than a no-decision. He was the best pitcher on the field by a wide margin and got nothing to show for it. Chase Call was the only Tourist to record multiple hits, going 2-for-2 with a walk and a hit by pitch to reach all four plate appearances.
Asheville falls to 12-7 in the second half but remains in first place in the South Atlantic League Southern Division, one game ahead of both Winston-Salem and Bowling Green. The two teams meet again Saturday night at HomeTrust Park. Nolan Devos takes the ball for Asheville against the Dash's Drew McDaniel. First pitch is set for 6:05 p.m.