Parade of Hits: Dash pounds Hillcats with 17-hit attack in 13-3 win

The bats for the Winston-Salem Dash were as hot as the temperature yesterday as it pounded the Lynchburg Hillcats 13-3 at Wake Forest Baseball Park.

The game-time temperature was 87 degrees, and the Dash finished with 17 hits. Of the 17 hits, four were home runs, two by Seth Loman.

Winston-Salem was able to bounce back yesterday after blowing a 6-5 lead in the ninth inning Saturday night and falling to Lynchburg 7-6 in 10 innings.

"They continue to go out there and grind out every AB (at-bat), no matter what the score is," Manager Joe McEwing said. "They're doing an outstanding job."

McEwing added that attitude is inherent throughout the team.

"We try to preach to never give away an at-bat, no matter what the score or the situation," he said. "Throughout this year, this team is resilient. No matter if we're down 10 or up 10 they continue to grind out every AB and don't give anything away."

The Hillcats took a 1-0 lead after the first inning, but the Dash tied it at 1 in the second on a base hit by Kyle Shelton, a former player at North Carolina, who drove in Salvador Sanchez.

Winston-Salem got to Lynchburg starter Jeff Locke (2-7) in the third inning. Tyler Kuhn led off with a single up the middle and moved to second after Greg Paiml reached on a sacrifice bunt by beating the throw from third baseman Jose De Los Santos. With Jimmy Gallagher at the plate, both runners moved up on a double steal. Kuhn scored on a fielder's choice from Gallagher to give the Dash a 2-1 lead, and Paiml moved to third. Brent Morel followed with a sacrifice fly to right to score Paiml and push the lead to 3-1.

Loman then walked and Sanchez hit a two-run home run to left-center on the first pitch from Locke, which gave the Dash a commanding 5-1 lead.

Lynchburg added a run in the fifth off starter Jacob Rasner (3-0). Jordy Mercer tripled with one out and scored on a double by Matt Hague.

Locke left after three innings in favor of Paul Mildren. Locke gave up five runs, six hits, with a walk and two strikeouts.

Mildren fared no better. Paiml led off the fifth with a base hit past De Los Santos, and with one out, Morel hit a line-drive homer just over the eight-foot wall in left to push the lead to 7-2.

McEwing said he changed the lineup to give Dale Mollenhauer a day off. The tactic worked.

"He's been going at it pretty hard. Through the course of the year you need days off and get a little break, and today that was it," McEwing said.

Rasner left after the fifth inning, and Hector Santiago came on in relief. Rasner gave up two runs, five hits and four walks with four strikeouts.

Santiago gave up a solo homer to Chase d'Arnaud in the seventh to trim the lead to 7-3.

The Dash added to its lead in the bottom of the seventh. Morel doubled to center with two outs, and Loman homered to right on the first pitch from reliever Ramon Arguero for a 9-3 lead.

Loman, a 6-4, 240-pound designated hitter from Las Vegas, started the season at Winston-Salem, but struggled early and was sent to Kannapolis of the low Class A South Atlantic League on May 18. He hit eight homers for Kannapolis and was sent back June 17.

"I've worked with our hitting coach Robert Sasser a lot. I've worked on some stuff -- working on my stride and all that kind of stuff -- so it paid off today," Loman said.

Loman said he had a three-homer game against the Greensboro Grasshoppers when he was with Kannapolis.

"I feel good. Whenever I keep my stride short it allows me to see things well."

The Dash added four more runs in the eighth off Chris Cullen. Kuhn led off with a double to right-center and went to third on a fielder's choice. Kuhn scored on a single to right by Gallagher and went to second on a wild pitch. Morel then walked, and Loman hit his fifth homer of the season, a three-run shot to left on an 0-2 count to make it 13-3.

Winston-Salem is off today before starting a nine-game road trip, beginning in Salem on Tuesday night.

"We need to build off this win and take it on the road," Loman said.

LYNCH. ab r h bi W-S ab r h bi

d'Arnd 2b 4 1 1 1 Kuhn lf 5 2 3 0

Presley cf 4 1 1 0 Paiml ss 5 2 3 0

Mercer ss 4 1 1 0 Galghr 1b 5 1 1 2

Hague 1b 3 0 1 1 Morel 3b 3 3 2 3

Watts c 4 0 1 1 Loman dh 4 3 3 5

Romak rf 4 0 0 0 Snchez cf 4 2 3 2

Fryer dh 3 0 0 0 Curtis c 5 0 0 0

Keel lf 3 0 0 0 Shelton rf 3 0 1 1

DLs Sts 3b 4 0 1 0 Prschna 2b 4 0 1 0

Totals 33 3 6 3 Totals 38 13 17 13

Lynchburg 100 010 100 -- 3


Winston-Salem 014 020 024 -- 13

E--Watts. DP--Lynchburg 1. LOB--Lynchburg 7, Winston-Salem 6. 2B--Presley, Hague, More, Kuhn. 3B--Mercer. HR--d'Arnaud, Sanchez, Morel, Loman 2. SB--De Los Santos, Paiml, Kuhn 2, Sanchez.

Lynchburg IP H R ER BB SO

Locke, L (2-7) 3 6 5 5 1 2

Mildren 2 4 2 2 0 3

Arguero 2 3 2 2 1 1

Cullen 1 4 4 4 1 0

Winston-Salem IP H R ER BB SO

Rasner, W (3-0) 5 5 2 2 2 4

Santiago 2 1 1 1 0 3

Maxwell 2 0 0 0 0 0

WP--Locke, Cullen. HBP--by Arguero (Shelton). T--2:48. A--844