Reyes Debut Overshadowed in 11-2 Loss

COLUMBIA, SC – The Fireflies fell 11-2 to the Carolina Mudcats with a grand slam in the ninth sealing the deal on a rough outing Thursday evening at Segra Park.

Emmanuel Reyes (L, 0-1) made his Carolina League debut and when he exited the ball game, it was tied 2-2 with runners on the corners with two outs. Prior to that, he fanned six hitters and allowed four hits while issuing a pair of walks. The 19-year-old threw 16 of his first 20 pitches for strikes and ended the night with 72 pitches, 43 of which were in the zone.

Jose Sibrian was the difference maker for the Mudcats Thursday night. He hit a grand slam in the ninth to stretch the lead to 11-2 and went for 4-5 with two homers, five RBI and a double on the night.

The Fireflies tied the game in the bottom of the fourth. With two outs and two strikes on Dionmy Salon he pulled his second home run of the season beyond the left field fence, scoring Roger Leyton to knot the score at 2-2.

The Mudcats immediately took the lead back though. In the top of the fifth, Kay-Lan Nicasia hit a one out single, stole his way to third and came around on a Luke Adams RBI single to give the Mudcats a 3-2 lead.

After that, it was all Mudcats, who scored three runs in the sixth off Ben Sears. The frame was highlights by a Nicasia two RBI single to plate Jace Avina and Jesus Parra.

Carolina broke the scoreless tie in the second inning. Jose Sibrian laced a lead-off double to right-center and came around on a Jadher Areinamo sacrifice fly to make it 1-0. They doubled their lead in the fourth inning after Sibrian got a one out single, advanced to second on a wild pitch and came around on an Areinamo single.

The Fireflies continue their series with the Carolina Mudcats tomorrow night at Segra Park at 7:05 pm. LHP Hunter Patteson (0-0, 0.00 ERA) gets the nod for Columbia and RHP Will Rudy (4-2, 3.59 ERA) counters for the Carolina Mudcats.

Tomorrow night is the start of Super Hero Weekend at Segra Park. We’ll be giving away a Cayden Wallace Super Hero Bobblehead to the first 1,000 fans through the gates, courtest of SAFE Federal Credit Union. Gates open at 6 pm and the bobbleheads will go fast. Tickets are available at FirefliesTickets.com.