Despite a big first inning, the Charleston RiverDogs fell 7-5 to the Augusta GreenJackets in front of 4,824 fans at Riley Park.

Augusta (41-33, 6-2 second half) jumped on the board first, scoring three runs, highlighted by a two-run single from Dallas Macias.

The RiverDogs (41-33, 4-4) rallied back immediately in the bottom of the inning. After the first three hitters reached to load the bases, Brady Marget drew a bases-loaded walk to make it 3-1.

The next hitter was Larry Martinez who lined an RBI single to center that cut the deficit to one. Angel Mateo and JD Gonzalez followed with back-to-back ground outs that brought home two more to give Charleston a 4-3 lead.

In the top of the second, the back-and-forth contest continued when Alex Lodise chopped an RBI groundout to short that evened the score at 4.

The GreenJackets later took a 5-4 lead in the top of the third when Tanner Smith lined an RBI single to left.

Both sides exchanged scoreless frames through the sixth until Augusta added on one more in the seventh.

In the bottom of the same frame, Nicandro Aybar singled and scored from first on an errant pickoff attempt to cut the deficit to 6-5.

In the top of the ninth, Smith powered a solo shot to left that capped scoring at 7-5.

Ballpark fun

The Joe got an early start on celebrating the Fourth of July with Yankee Doodle Warm Up. Fans filled the ballpark wearing plenty of red, white, and blue, and the patriotic theme carried throughout the night with fun America themed promotions and plenty of holiday spirit.

After the final out, everyone looked to the sky for one of the biggest traditions of the season. The postgame fireworks marked the biggest of the season, and the show lit up the Charleston night and gave fans the perfect start to their Independence Day weekend. Between the packed crowd, festive atmosphere, and fireworks, it was another great Saturday night at The Joe.