Gastonia Ghost Peppers 4, Charleston Dirty Birds 1
GASTONIA, N.C. – Nick Wells tossed six innings of one-run ball, propelling the Ghost Peppers to defeat Charleston 4-1 on Saturday night and win their seventh straight game.
Wells followed up Matt Hartman’s gem from the night prior with one of his own in the fifth game of the week-long series against the Dirty Birds.
The southpaw struck out seven batters and retired the final seven Charleston hitters he faced in the strong performance.
As was the case with Hartman, Wells got run support right out of the gate.
Narciso Crook roped an RBI double off the left-field fence and Eric De La Rosa rolled a run-scoring single into center, giving the Peppers a 2-0 lead in the first. Saturday night marked the fourth straight game in which Gastonia scored multiple first-inning runs.
Carter Aldrete crushed his eighth homer of the year in the third inning – demolishing the ball 109 miles-per-hour beyond the left-center field wall.
After Wells set down seven straight batters to end his outing, the bullpen protected the lead. Bryan Blanton recorded two outs in the seventh, Ryan Hennen retired all four hitters he faced and Cory Thompson dealt a perfect ninth.
Thompson recorded his second save of the year, nailing down the 4-1 win for Gastonia. The Peppers have now won seven straight contests and have won 11 of their past 12.
Gastonia remains in first place in the South, improving to 18-11 in the second half. The Ghost Peppers aim to sweep the Dirty Birds in the six-game series, with the final game beginning at 4 p.m. on Sunday.
Lexington Legends 9, York Revolution 3
The Legends bounced back in a big way Saturday night, rolling to a 9–3 win over the Revolution and keeping themselves firmly in the South Division chase. Lexington came out swinging and put the game away with two big innings in the middle frames, keeping them in tight contention with Gastonia.
Garrett Pike was the spark, launching his first professional homerun – a two-run bomb in the top of the 5th – and scoring three runs. Pedro Gonzalez added his 10th blast of the year, while Curtis Terry kept the line moving with two RBI knocks. In all, the Legends put up 10 hits, drew key walks, and made York’s pitching staff work all night.
On the mound, Ben Ferrer turned in one of his better outings of the season, going six innings and giving up just two runs. He kept the ball in the park, scattered six hits, and struck out four before handing it off to a bullpen that slammed the door. The combo of Armstrong, Loper, and Haab allowed only one run over the final three frames.
With the win, Lexington avoided falling further behind in the standings and are setting themselves for a high-stakes showdown. They will face York a final time on Sunday for the series, then will return to Lexington to take on the Gastonia Ghost Peppers in a heavyweight showdown for first place in the South Division.
High Point Rockers 4, Southern Maryland Blue Crabs 2
HIGH POINT, N.C. – The High Point Rockers pitching staff spun a five-hitter and beat Southern Maryland 4-2 on Saturday night in front of a crowd of 2,241 at Truist Point. Starter Mike Devine (W, 2-1) held the Blue Crabs to four hits over six innings while the Rockers bullpen allowed only one hit over the final three innings in a dominant pitching performance.
With the win, the Rockers continue to hold the Atlantic League’s top overall record at 57-35 while Southern Maryland fell to 48-43 overall and 12-16 in the second half. The Rockers are 15-13 in the second half and trailed both Gastonia and Lexington whose games were still in progress Saturday night.
Southern Maryland took a 2-0 lead in the second, using a double by Brett Barrera and a single by Jamari Baylor along with an RBI groundout by Alejandro De Aza.
The Rockers tied the game in the third when D.J. Burt hit a solo homer, his third of the year. Luis Gonzalez then singled and scored on a double by Ben Aklinski to make it a 2-2 game.
The Rockers moved ahead in the sixth when Blue Crabs starter Connor Overton (L, 0-3) started the frame with a walk to Drew Mendoza. After stealing second, Mendoza scored on a single by Alex Dickerson for a 3-2 Rockers lead. High Point added an insurance run following a walk to Luke Napleton and an RBI single by Burt that pushed Dickerson across the plate.
Devine went six innings, allowing four hits and two runs with one walk and two strikeouts. Gabe Klobosits pitched around a single in the seventh while striking out three. Cam Cotter put the Crabs down in order in the eighth and Jameson McGrane had a 1-2-3 inning in the ninth to earn his 11th save of the season and the 100th save of his professional career. Rockers pitchers retired 17 of the last 18 Southern Maryland batters.
Burt and Dickerson were the lone Rockers with a pair of hits among High Point’s seven-hit attack. Barrera had two of SMD’s five hits on the night.
The final game of the six-series is slated for a 4:05 p.m. start on Sunday afternoon at Truist Point. The Rockers will send LHP Ben Wereski (0-1, 4.61) to the mound to face Southern Maryland RHP Jalen Miller (7-4, 3.89). Rocker fans can catch all the action on FLOBASEBALL.TV and on the MixLR app.
Lancaster Stormers 10, Staten Island FerryHawks 6
The Lancaster Stormers sprinted out to a 10-0 lead over the first two innings at Staten Island on Saturday evening.
However, the offense ran out of fuel, and the Stormers found themselves hanging on for a 10-6 victory over the host FerryHawks at SIUH Community Park.
With the win, the Stormers pulled into a first place tie with Long Island. The clubs have matching 18-11 records.
Mason Martin and Kevin Watson, Jr. connected for two-run homers in a four-run first inning. Ofelky Peralta (0-3) nearly escaped the second thanks to a 5-3 double play, but a walk to Joe Campagna kept the inning alive. Nick Lucky made it 5-0 with a single to right. Watson was hit by a pitch to fill the bags, and a walk to Alex Isola pushed the sixth run home.
Evan Alexander greeted reliever Matt Zguro with a two-run double to left center. Yeison Coca’s single down the right field line boosted the Lancaster gap to 10-0.
The offense managed only three hits for the remainder of the game.
Noah Skirrow (12-3) retired the first seven batters he faced, five on strikes, before running into some friction. Alberto Osuna singled with one out in the third. Skirrow then hit Drew Maggi and allowed a single by Eddy Diaz. A wild pitch brought home the Hawks’ first run. Skirrow walked Mark Contreras to reload the bases before coaxing a double play out of Tyler Dearden to end the inning.
Skirrow was clean through the next two innings before Staten Island reached him for a three-run sixth inning. Diaz homered to left to open the frame. Singles by Dearden, Matt Scheffler and Vaun Brown loaded the bases. Pablo Sandoval lined to short, but Brandon Martorano’s single to center cut the lead to 10-4.
Osuna struck out to end the inning.
The Stormers went to A.J. Alexy who fired a 1-2-3 seventh inning but loaded the bases with two outs in the eighth. A walk to Osuna made it 10-5. Billy Sullivan was summoned to face Maggi. A passed ball during the at bat allowed a sixth Staten Island run to score before Maggi was retired on a screaming line to Ward at third to finish the inning.
Sullivan got the side in order in the ninth for his first save.
Lancaster will visit the FerryHawks to conclude the series on Sunday afternoon. Michael McAvene (4-3) will start for the Stormers against local right-hander Ryan Kehoe (2-0). Fans may follow the action on FloBaseball beginning at 1:25.
NOTES: Martin’s 27th homer of the season ties him for fifth in club history…He also hit 27 last year…Skirrow has taken the league lead with 107 strikeouts…He is 4-0 against Staten Island…Sullivan became the 10th Stormer to earn a save this year…Lancaster is 8-0 with Campagna catching.
Hagerstown Flying Boxcars 7, Long Island Ducks 5
(Hagerstown, Md., Aug. 9, 2025) – The Long Island Ducks were defeated by the Hagerstown Flying Boxcars 7-5 on Saturday evening in the middle game of a three-game series at Meritus Park.
The Flying Boxcars took a 1-0 lead in the bottom half of the first inning On Gary Mattis’ run-scoring single against Ducks starting pitcher Jonah Dipoto. Long Island made it 2-1 in their favor in the third on RBI doubles from Kole Kaler and Ivan Castillo versus Hagerstown starting pitcher Jonh Henriquez. The Flying Boxcars scored three times in the bottom of the frame for a 4-2 advantage by way of a two-run single from Bryce Cannon and a sacrifice fly off the bat of Ossie Abreu.
The Flock scored single runs in the fifth and sixth to tie the game at four on Seth Beer’s two-out RBI base hit to centerfield and Kaler’s sacrifice fly to left. Hagerstown scored twice in the last of the sixth to go back out in front 6-4 on a Tyler Williams RBI double and Aaron Takacs sacrifice fly. Long Island cut the deficit in half in the seventh on Beer’s run-scoring groundout, but Williams’ two-out RBI single in the eighth closed out the scoring to give the home team the victory.
Neither starter factored into the decision. Dipoto gave up five runs on six hits across five and one-third innings pitched, walking five and striking out three. Henriquez allowed three runs on four hits in four and two-thirds innings of work to go along with four walks and three strikeouts. Branden Noriega (1-0) notched the win after allowing one run on one hit in two and a pair of strikeouts in two innings out of the bullpen. Ryan Langford (0-1) was tagged with the loss, surrendering a run on one hit and a strikeout in two-thirds of an inning. Rafael Kelly struck out the side in the ninth for his 10th save of the season.
River Town led the way at the plate for Long Island with two singles, a pair of runs scored, a walk and three stolen bases.
The Ducks and Flying Boxcars wrap up their three-game set on Sunday night. First pitch is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. at Meritus Park. Fans can follow all the action live on FloBaseball. Sign up today by CLICKING HERE. Right-hander Tim Melville (4-1, 4.57) toes the rubber for the Ducks against Flying Boxcars lefty Anthony Imhoff (0-5, 7.90).
Long Island returns home on Tuesday, August 12, to begin another three-game set against the Revolution. Game time is slated for 6:35 p.m., with the Fairfield Properties Ballpark gates opening at 5:35 (5:20 for full season ticket holders). It’s Jewish Heritage Night, presented by the JCCs of Long Island, and following the game, all fans in attendance will be treated to a Fireworks Spectacular. The Ducks will also be wearing special commemorative jerseys during the game, which fans can bid on via the LiveSource Mobile App. Tickets to the game and all Ducks games are now available and can be purchased by visiting the ballpark box office, calling (631) 940-TIXX or CLICKING HERE.