First Game Set for 5:05 p.m., Game Two and Fireworks to Follow

The Wilmington Sharks of the Coastal Plain League have announced that their game in Columbia on Wednesday, July 26 has been postponed due to rain and will now be made up as part of a doubleheader when the Blowfish come to Wilmington on Saturday night.

Saturday’s first game will begin at 5:05 p.m. with the gates opening at 4 p.m., with game two to follow game one before Taco Bell postgame fireworks will conclude the night.

Both games will be seven inning contests.

The Sharks now have a home game on Wednesday night against Florence and Thursday against Fayetteville with both games set for 7:05 first pitches with gates opening at 6 p.m. before now playing back-to-back doubleheaders on Friday in Florence and Saturday against Columbia. The Sharks close their home portion of the 2011 regular season on Sunday when Morehead City comes to town before Wilmington goes to Morehead City to close the regular season on Monday and Tuesday nights.

The Wilmington Sharks are members of Coastal Plain League, the nation’s hottest summer collegiate baseball league.  Celebrating its 15^th season, The Coastal Plain League features 15 teams playing in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia.  The CPL gives college players the chance to refine their skills with the use of wooden bats.  Players are housed with local host families for the summer.  The CPL has had over 930 alumni drafted and 45 alums make their Major League debut thus far.  For more information on the Coastal Plain League, please visit the league website at www.coastalplain.com.

The Wilmington Sharks dropped two games to the Florence RedWolves in CPL South Division action Monday night, falling 4-3 in game one before losing 7-0 in the nightcap as they fell out of first place in the South Division.

With the two losses, the Sharks fall to 10-9 in the second half, while Fayetteville improved to 11-9 win a win over Columbia and Morehead City also sits on an 11-9 record after their loss to Martinsville Monday night. With their two wins over the Sharks, Florence suddenly sees itself moving into the playoff picture at 9-9 after the wins.

In game one, the Sharks outhit the RedWolves seven to three, but could not come up with the big hit, as seven different Wilmington players had one hit apiece.

Florence found themselves up 2-0 after two at-bats, scoring in the first off of one hit and one Sharks error and then in the second scoring without a hit as a leadoff walk came around to score and give the RedWolves the advantage.

The Sharks answered in the bottom of the second, when Emilio Pagan walked before sealing second base and advancing to third on a groundout by Scott Coleman before scoring on an RBI groundout from Jeff Moyer.

However, Florence came right back with two runs in the top of the third on one hit, one walk, a double steal and a pair of wild pitches to take a 4-1 lead.

Wilmington made it interesting by scoring a run in both the fifth and sixth innings, first in the fifth when Aaron Preston doubled before scoring on Alex Freedman’s RBI groundout two batters later, and then in the sixth when Kenny Bryant singled to open the inning before advancing around the bases with the help of a Pagan groundout and a Coleman single before scoring on a Moyer RBI groundout.

In the seventh, the Sharks put Justyn Carter on with a one out single before Freedman followed with a walk before the game ended in bizarre fashion.

Jake Mayers grounded up the middle as the Florence middle infielders retired Freedman on the force out at second base for out number two before throwing home and getting Carter, who was trying to score from second, at the plate for the third out of the inning and the final out of game one.

Chris O’Grady (2-3) took the loss on the mound for the Sharks in game one after going five innings and allowing three hits and four runs (three earned) while walking three and striking out two batters.

In the nightcap, the Sharks left nine men on base throughout the contest, highlighted by leaving the bases loaded in the second inning and twice leaving two runners on base.

With the score still at zeros in the second inning, the Sharks used singles by Daniel Aldrich, Moyer and Eric Mayers to load the bases before Freedman popped out to third base in foul territory to end the threat.

In the top of the third, Florence took the lead off of one hit and a Wilmington error before adding two more runs in the top of the fourth off of two hits and two Sharks errors to increase the lead.

Two two-run homers in the top of the seventh sealed the game for the RedWolves.

The Sharks travel to Columbia on Tuesday night before returning home to play Florence on Wednesday night with gates opening at 6 p.m. and first pitch scheduled for 7:05.

The Wilmington Sharks enter the final nine days of the 2011 Coastal Plain League regular season with 11 games over that stretch, beginning with a doubleheader against Florence Monday night with gates opening at 5 p.m. with the first game set to begin at 6:05 with the second game to follow.

Monday's doubleheader will also be a House Party at the Shark Tank with beverage specials all night long.

After traveling to Columbia on Tuesday, the Sharks return home when Florence comes back to town on Wednesday for a 7:05 game that features The RockNRoll Chorus performing beginning at 6:15 p.m.

The final Fat Tony's Tirsty Thursday of the regular season will be against the Fayetteville Swampdogs at 7:05 on Ethos Shirt off our Back Night before the Sharks travel to Florence on Friday night.

Saturday and Sunday the Sharks return to the Shark Tank for the final two home games of the regular season, hosting Columbia on Saturday at 7;05 with Taco Bell postgame fireworks to follow the game. 

Sunday, the Sharks host the Morehead City Marlins in a three-game series against the  Marlins to end the regular season. The Sharks final home game of the regular season will also be Miller Motte 2011 Team Photo Giveaway Night as the gates open at 6 p.m. with first pitch at 7:05.

The Sharks end the regular season in Morehead City on Monday and Tuesday nights.

For the second night in a row the Wilmington Sharks (10-7) fell to a CPL Western Division foe, this time the Asheboro Copperheads (8-12) on Sunday night. After collecting only four hits in their loss Saturday, the Sharks tallied only five hits against Asheboro, losing 2-1 in an epic pitching duel.

Despite their second loss in as many days, the Sharks kept their hold on first place in the CPL South Division, with Morehead City having an off day on Sunday and remaining in second place and the Fayetteville Swampdogs being stuck in third place by virtue of a loss to Columbia in Fayetteville Sunday night.

Daniel Aldrich was the only player in either dugout to have two hits in the Sharks' loss Sunday night.

Asheboro was held to just three hits by Sharks starter Jake Mayers (2-2), who tossed seven innings and struck out five Copperheads batters while walking just three and allowing both runs to score.

Starter Chuck Fontana (3-5) was equally as impressive, going 6.1 innings and allowing four Sharks hits and three walks while striking out seven and allowing the lone Wilmington run in the fifth inning.

The run came off the bat of Sharks catcher Eric Mayers, who sent the solo shot over the left field wall to open the top of the fifth and tie the game at that point.

Asheboro, who opened the scoring in the bottom of the first, took the lead for good in the bottom of the sixth.

Daniel Aldrich was the only hitter on either team to record a multiple-hit night, finishing 2-for-4, while Alex Freedman, Jeff Moyer and Eric Mayers each finished with one hit each for the Sharks.

Asheboro scored in the bottom of the first off of one hit and one Sharks error, but Jake Mayers pitched out of the jam and got the final two outs on the inning and left the bases loaded.

After Eric Mayers solo homer tied the game in the fifth, Asheboro’s Jacob Wilson doubled to open the bottom of the sixth before advancing to third one batter later before scoring on a sacrifice fly to center field to score the eventual winning run.

The Sharks return home on Monday night, as they host the Florence RedWolves in a CPL South Division doubleheader with the first game set to begin at 6:05 with the gates opening at 5 p.m.  as they gear up for the final nine days of the 2011 CPL regular season that will see them playing 11 games over that span.

The Wilmington Sharks (10-6) dropped their first of two straight road games on the road Saturday night, falling to the Gastonia Grizzles 8-3 as the visitors were held to just four hits.

With the loss, the Sharks lead in the CPL South Division shrink back to just one-half game, this time with the Morehead City Marlins in second place after their win Saturday night. Fayetteville dropped to one game back and into third place in the South after losing to Columbia.

Kenny Bryant had a hit and scored twice in the Sharks' loss Saturday night.

Against Gastonia (9-9), the Sharks fell victim to an eight-ininng, three hit performance from Grizzles starter Michael Heesch, who also struck out eight.

Wilmington starter Chris Mazza fell to 4-3 on the season after allowing seven runs on 10 Gastonia hits over 5-2/3 innings of work.

The Sharks plated their first run in the top of the fourth, with Gastonia already having four runs on the scoreboard, before seeing the hosts extend the lead with two runs in the fifth and one run in both the sixth and seventh before the Sharks plated two runs in the top of the ninth for the final score.

Jeff Moyer, Kenny Bryant, Jake Mayers and Scott Coleman each tallied one hit apiece, with Mayers and Chris Dula picking up an RBI apiece. Bryant scored two of the Sharks three runs.

The Sharks had two of their four hits in the fourth inning, as Bryant singled with one out before Jake Mayers followed him up with an RBI double.

Down 8-1 in the ninth, Moyer opened the inning with a single before Bryant reached on an error that allowed the baserunners to each advance one base. Dula, pinch hitting for Mayers, fouled a sacrifice fly into foul territory to the first baseman before an error by the first baseman allowed both Moyer and Bryant to score.

The Sharks then saw Daniel Aldrich reach via a hit by pitch before he was retired by a fielders’ choice that allowed Scott Coleman to reach base. Coleman advanced to second on a Gastonia passed ball before Alex Freedman reached on an error to shortstop that put runners at the corners. Russ Stupienski flew out to right field to end the game.

The Sharks play in Asheboro on Sunday before returning home Monday to face Florence in a doubleheader with game one set to begin at 6:05.