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GREENSBORO — The Grasshoppers continue to struggle in the second half of the season, losing to the Savannah Sand Gnats 9-6 on Thursday night. Though they beat the Sand Gnats (12-15, 45-52) on Wednesday, the Hoppers (9-18, 47-50) have yet to record a win streak for the past three and a half weeks.

Coming off an 8-1 win the night before, Greensboro initially started the game with firepower. Ozzie Martinez connected on the Hoppers' first pitch of the game, blasting a solo home run. Danny Garcia followed with a solo homer of his own off the first pitch in the bottom of the second inning.

"I noticed that he was just throwing a first-pitch fastball to ever single guy, so I just jumped on (it)," Garcia said.

Pitcher Bryan Evans, in his first start of the season for the Hoppers, started out strong, giving up one hit in the first three innings. However, Jose Jimenez hit a two-out, two-run homer in the fourth to tie the game at 2-2.

The Hoppers regained the lead in the bottom of the fourth, after Torre Langley's RBI single sent Danny Garcia home for a 3-2 lead.

Jimenez then repeated his earlier effort in the sixth, hitting another two-out, two-run homer to give the Gnats a 4-3 lead. Francisco Pena extended the Gnats' lead with a solo home run in the top of the seventh. Greg Veloz then hit an RBI single to score Michael Parker, followed by another RBI single by Juan Lagares to score Joaquin Rodriguez. Casey Craig completed the inning's scoring with a sacrifice fly to bring Veloz home, giving the Gnats an 8-3 lead in a four-run seventh inning.

The Hoppers attempted a comeback in the bottom of the seventh. Dominguez's RBI single scored Justin Jacobs. Bryan Petersen then scored on an outfield throwing error. Hunter Mense hit an RBI double to score Dominguez. The Hoppers trailed 8-6 at the end of seven.

Carlos Guzman ruined the comeback in the eighth inning, with an RBI single to give the Gnats an insurance run.

Evans pitched six innings. He gave up two home runs and four earned runs on seven hits.

"There were a few mistakes that should not have happened," said Garcia, who also offered a possible excuse for the team's pitching. "It's a small ballpark, so a lot of things might just go out."

Fatigue might play a role in the Hoppers slump.

"There's a big difference," Garcia said. "I'm sure a lot of people are getting tired because we're getting towards the end of the season. We've got a lot of young guys and it's their first full season, so they're just going to be struggling for the rest of the month."

The Hoppers finish up their first and only series with the Sand Gnats this weekend, with home games tonight and Saturday.

"We don't have much information about this team," Garcia said. "All we can do is go day by day for the rest of the weekend."

Contact Joel Brown at 373-7091 or joel.brown@news-record.com