FLORENCE, S.C.---Sharks newcomer Aaron Preston had a strong offensive night, going 2-3 with a double and a triple, but RedWolves starter Alex Kreis kept the rest of the Sharks bats relatively quiet as Florence beat Wilmington 5-1.  The RedWolves beat the Sharks 9-3 in the conclusion of a July 9 suspended game earlier in the night in a game that resumed in the sixth inning.

Kreis (5-2) got the win going 5.1 innings and allowing just one run on three hits.  He walked five and struck out three.

The RedWolves got on the board first in the bottom of the second.  Third baseman Ethan Santora led off the inning with a lead off double facing Sharks starter Corey Carver.  With two outs Will Fontnow hit a potential inning-ending grounder to Joey Rapp at third but Rapp's throw was off target, allowing Santora to score from third.

The Sharks first legitimate scoring opportunity came in the third.  Aaron Preston, who just joined Wilmington this week, showed his impressive speed by legging out a triple to right field to lead off the inning against Florence starter Alex Kreis.  Ben Fish drew a week to put runners on the corners with no outs but Alex Hill struck out and Aaron Miller grounded into a 6-4-3 double play to end the threat.

The RedWolves would extend the lead in the fourth when Trey Hernandez hit a monster home run into the trees behind the left field wall to make it a 2-0 game.  It was Hernandez' fifth homer of the season, tying him with Ethan Santora and Ronnie Freeman for the team lead.  Florence threatened for more in the inning.  Herman Petzold drew a one-out walk, stole second, and reached third on a John Frost bunt.  Will Fontnow reached on a catcher's interference call and stole second but Austin Smetana grounded out to short to end the inning.  

The Sharks scored in the fifth when Ben Fish hit a sacrifice fly to deep right center, scoring Richie Allen and moving Preston, who doubled in the inning, to third base with one out.  RedWolves third baseman Santora threw out Hill and Miller on consecutive groundballs to preserve Florence's lead.

The RedWolves would extend the lead again in the bottom of the fifth against Sharks reliever Joe Wagstaff, in his first relief appearance of the year.  Tyler Boyd picked up an RBI single, scoring Jordan Sells.  Later in the inning, Peter Mooney would score on a ground ball off the bat of Petzold.

Florence tacked on another when a Kenny Bryant throwing error scored Smetana to give the RedWolves the 5-1 lead.

Carver (1-2) was solid in his first start of the season after 15 relief appearances.  He went five innings, allowing two runs and two hits, while walking one and striking out three.  

With the two losses in Florence, Wilmington falls to 21-23 and 7-10 in the second half.  The Sharks are now 5.5 games behind Morehead City for first place in the CPL South.  They also fall to two games behind Martinsville in the wild card race.

The Sharks are back on the road Sunday in Columbia to take on the Blowfish at 6:05 p.m.  Wilmington returns to Buck Hardee Field to face the Morehead City Marlins on July 26 for Cape Fear Diagnostics Autograph Mug Night and Boy Scout Night.  The first 500 fans into the park will receive an mug autographed by the Wilmington Sharks courtesy of Cape Fear Diagnostics.  All boy scouts who wear their uniform to the park will get free admission to the game.  Gates open at 6:00 p.m. with first pitch at 7:05.

---David Tanklefsky