Nick Ciolli made a splash in his debut with the Winston-Salem Dash last night, driving in the go-ahead run and propelling his new team to an 8-3 victory over the Myrtle Beach Pelicans.
Ciolli, a left-handed hitting outfielder, was promoted from low Class A Kannapolis, where he hit .296 with 12 home runs and 73 RBIs in 115 games.
He batted fifth for the Dash last night and delivered a big hit in the sixth inning that ended a back-and-forth battle at BB&T Ballpark.
Seth Loman, one of five Dash players with multiple hits, led off the sixth with a double off Pelicans starter Zeke Spruill. Ciolli, a former Indiana State player, then broke a 3-3 tie with a double to left-center that drove home Loman.
"I've been coming out swinging and I wasn't going to change anything," said Ciolli, who finished 2 for 4 and scored twice. "I was being aggressive. I was looking for something to just move the runner, but I hit it really well, got good backspin on it and it went all the way to the wall."
From there, the Dash hammered out four more runs over the final three innings.
Jon Gilmore had three hits for the Dash, and Ciolli, Loman, Luis Sierra and Greg Paiml all had two hits apiece.
But a big part of the Dash's fourth victory in the past five games was pitching.
Since last Sunday, Dash starters have posted a 2.51 earned-run average.
Terry Doyle (7-8) pitched seven innings last night. He gave up three runs, walked one and struck out six.
Ryan Kussmaul picked up his first save with two hitless innings. He struck out four and didn't walk any.
"Pitching and defense win ballgames," said Manager Joe McEwing of the Dash. "Doyle was outstanding. Other than two bad pitches (which resulted in solo home runs by Matt Kennelly), he pounded the zone and threw 20 of 27 first-pitch strikes. He stayed ahead and did an outstanding job.
"Then Kussmaul went out and threw two great innings. Right now, we're putting it all together. We're getting good pitching and having quality at-bats at the same time. That's the sign of a good ballclub."
The Dash announced yesterday that left-handed pitcher Garrett Johnson has been promoted to Class AAA Charlotte. Johnson pitched in 10 games with the Dash, and was 2-0 with a 4.15 ERA.
Outfielder Brandon Short has been placed on the seven-day disabled list, retroactive to Aug. 25, because of an oblique strain. Short entered last night ranked second in the Carolina League with a .316 batting average and has 15 home runs and 79 RBIs this season.
The Dash will face the Pelicans at 2 p.m. today. Stephen Sauer (7-10) is scheduled to start for the Dash against fellow right-hander Paul Clemens (0-3).
tbowman@wsjournal.com
727-7320
M.B. ab r h bi W-S ab r h bi
MyJones ss 4 1 1 0 Williams lf 5 0 0 1
Miles lf 3 0 0 0 Mrtnz cf 4 1 1 0
Rdrgz rf 3 0 2 1 Gilmore 3b 5 2 3 2
MiJones 1b 4 0 0 0 Loman 1b 4 1 2 0
Johnson dh 4 0 1 0 Cioli rf 4 2 2 1
Sime 3b 4 0 1 0 Sierra c 3 0 2 3
Kreke 2b 3 0 0 0 Johnson dh 3 0 0 1
Kennelly c 3 2 2 2 Garcia 2b 4 1 1 0
Ware cf 2 0 0 0 Paiml ss 2 1 2 0
Totals 30 3 7 3 Totals 34 8 13 8
Myrtle Beach 101 010 000 -- 3
Winston-Salem 000 212 12x -- 8
E--Garcia. DP--Myrtle Beach 1, Winston-Salem 2. LOB--Myrtle Beach 3, Winston-Salem 8. 2B--MyJones, Paiml, Loman, Ciloi, Gilmore 2. HR--Kennelly 2. SB--Paiml. PO--Doyle.
Myrtle Beach IP H R ER BB SO
Spruill, L (3-5) 6 12 6 6 1 5
Avilan 12/3 1 2 2 2 0
Rohrbough 1/3 0 0 0 0 0
Winston-Salem IP H R ER BB SO
Doyle, W (7-8) 7 7 3 3 1 6
Kussmaul, S, 1 2 0 0 0 0 4
IBB--by Spruill (Loman). HBP--by Spruill (Paiml), by Doyle (Ware). T--2:17. A--6,808.
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