Savannah 10, Rome 3

Game one of the four game series between the Savannah Sand Gnats and the Rome Braves was played in front of 3,393 fans Thursday evening at Grayson Stadium. Savannah outhit Rome 16-7 and also won the game, 10-3.

Savannah began the scoring in the 3rd inning. First baseman Nelfi Zapata doubled to get things started, and scored on a single by Albert Cordero. Rome scored their first run in the sixth inning, but Savannah answered emphatically with five runs of their own in the bottom of the inning.

To continue pouring it on, Savannah scored three more runs in the seventh inning and one run in the eighth. The Braves scored two runs in the seventh, but they couldn’t muster anymore offense last night.

Zapata and Cole Frenzel led the hit parade, as they each collected three hits and two RBIs. There were also four more Gnats players with two hits a piece. That included Chad Zurcher, Stefan Sabol, Albert Cordero, and Phillip Evans.

Logan Taylor started the game for Savannah, but left the contest with an apparent injury after 1.2 innings. Julian Hilario came in to try and each up some innings, and that’s exactly what he did. He threw 3.1 shutout innings, allowing just two hits. Tyler Vanderheiden came in to throw 1.2 innings, allowing three runs on two hits, three walks, and one strikeout. He earned the win, improving to 4-0.

Hunter Carnevale pitched 1.1 shutout innings, while Beck Wheeler threw 1 inning himself, allowing one hit and one strikeout.

Game two starts at 7:05pm Friday at Grayson Stadium.

Key Stats

Chad Zurcher: 2-for-4, 1 2B

Stefan Sabol: 2-for-5, 1 R, 1 SB

Cole Frenzel: 3-for-5, 2 RBI, 1 R

Nelfi Zapata: 3-for-5, 2 RBI, 3 R

Albert Cordero: 2-for-4, 2 RBI, 1 R

Phillip Evans: 2-for-4, 2 2B, 3 RBI