The Fayetteville Woodpeckers (3-11) and the Augusta GreenJackets (8-6) played game five on Saturday at SRP Park. Ryan Forcucci was on the mound for Fayetteville against Zach Royse of Augusta.
In the bottom of the first inning, Augusta had a runner on third base when Luis Guanipa hit a sacrifice fly to left field. Tate Southisene scored to put the GreenJackets up 1-0. After walking Junior Garcia, Ryan Forcucci threw a wild pitch, allowing Garcia to run to third base. Nick Montgomery followed up with an RBI single to shortstop Nick Monistere.
Garcia scored for a 2-0 lead. Forcucci threw another wild pitch and walked Caden Merritt before he was replaced by Jesus Carrera. With two outs, a lineout by Joe Olsavsky ended the inning. Ryan Forcucci allowed a hit, two runs, two walks, and one strikeout, throwing 33 pitches, of which 16 were strikes.
Moving to the bottom of the fifth inning, Augusta had a runner on second base when Tate Southisene hit a two-run home run in center field. The GreenJackets extended their lead to 4-0. It was Southisene’s second home run of the season. Augusta did not add any more runs in the inning. Jesus Carrera would go on to pitch 5.1 innings, allowing four hits, two runs, and four strikeouts, throwing 72 pitches, of which 45 were strikes.
Moving to the top of the seventh inning, Fayetteville shortstop Nick Monistere hit a single and center fielder Josh Wakefield worked a four-pitch walk. Two batters later, first baseman Nehomar Ochoa Jr. hit a two-run ground ball RBI single to shortstop Alex Lodise. A throwing error by Lodise allowed Monistere and Wakefield to score. The Woodpeckers trailed the GreenJackets 4-2.
Jhoster Baez was the new pitcher for Fayetteville in the bottom of the seventh inning. Baez loaded the bases when Luis Guanipa hit a sacrifice fly to right field. Dallas Macias scored for a 5-2 lead. Two batters later, Nick Montgomery hit an RBI ground ball to third base.
Tate Southisene scored for a 6-2 lead. Caden Merritt followed up with an RBI single to third base, scoring Alex Lodise for a 7-2 lead. With the bases loaded and two outs, Baez threw a wild pitch, and Nick Montgomery scored for an 8-2 lead. Cooper McMurray followed up by hitting a two-run RBI single off the glove of second baseman Camilo Diaz.
Joe Olsavsky and Caden Merritt scored for a 10-2 lead. Baez was replaced by Jose Varela. A flyout by Dallas Macias ended the inning. Jhoster Baez allowed four hits, five runs, two walks, and one strikeout, throwing 36 pitches, of which 19 were strikes.
In the bottom of the eighth inning, Augusta had runners on second and third base when Jose Varela threw a wild pitch. Luis Guanipa went to third base, and Alex Lodise scored for an 11-2 lead. Nick Montgomery followed up with a two-run home run to left field for a 13-2 lead.
With a runner on second base, Joe Olsavsky hit an RBI single to center field. Caden Merritt scored for a 14-2 lead. A groundout by Cooper McMurray ended the inning. Jose Varela pitched 1.1 innings, allowing four hits, three runs, one walk, and two strikeouts, throwing 32 pitches, of which 21 were strikes.
At the top of the ninth inning with two outs, Fayetteville designated hitter Kevin Alvarez hit a single to center field. A groundout by Xavier Neyens ended the game. The Woodpeckers were blown out by the GreenJackets 14-2.
Fayetteville finished the night with eight hits, committed one error, went 2 for 8 with runners in scoring position, and left nine men on base. Nehomar Ochoa Jr. went 1 for 3 with a single and one RBI. The loss went to Fayetteville starter Ryan Forcucci (0-1), and the win went to Augusta starter Zach Royse (1-0).
The Woodpeckers and the GreenJackets conclude the six-game series on Sunday at 2:05 pm on the MLB App. Fayetteville has yet to name a starter, while Davis Polo (0-0, 1.29 ERA) will be on the mound for Augusta.
