Fayetteville, N.C. - The Fredericksburg Nationals gave up the lead in the bottom of the 7th and couldn’t fight back in a 4-2 loss to the Fayetteville Woodpeckers in game one of the North Division Championship series.
It was a strong start for the FredNats, who got two runners in scoring position in the top of the 1st but came up empty. They threatened again in the 2nd and had more success. Dashyll Tejeda put the Nationals on the board with an RBI groundout. Jordan Williams doubled the lead with an RBI double to bring across Cashel Dugger and make it 2-0.
Soon after, in the bottom of the 3rd, Fayetteville got on the board as Kam Durnin hit an RBI single to plate Rashawn Galloway and cut the deficit in half. The Woodpeckers were quiet until the bottom of the 7th when Galloway tied the game with an RBI single. On that play, the ball was misplayed by the right fielder Gavin Fien, allowing Arturo Flores to score as well and give Fayetteville the lead. They added on another run on a sacrifice fly in the 8th.
The backend of the Fayetteville bullpen was nails. Charlie Weber and Brandon Cassedy combined to go 12 up, 12 down over the final four innings, as the FredNats went bringing just three to the plate in five of the final six innings.
With the loss, Fredericksburg will be playing for its season tomorrow. RHP Landon Harmon will get the start against RHP Jagger Beck. First pitch in game two on Thursday is set for 6:35 PM from Virginia Credit Union Stadium.