For the second time in six games, The Piedmont Kingsmen Baseball team needed extra innings to walk away with the win over the Lake Norman Copperheads at York Comprehensive High School, 6-5 in 10 innings.
“It was a good win for us. We were coming off back-to-back losses, so getting back in the win column feels good.” Said head coach Joe Hudak after the win.
The Lake Norman Copperheads would score three runs off of four hits in the top of the eighth inning to tie the game at 5 apiece. In the top of the 10th inning, the Copperheads world load the bases with no outs. North Greenville University attendee, Kaleb Gibson would respond with a strikeout, and then get the Copperheads five hitter to fly out to right field. The Copperheads would send the runner home on the sacrifice fly, but after a conference between the umpires, they ruled the runner left third early, and the Pride stepped on third base for the third out of the inning.
In the home half of the 10th, Brooks O’Brien lead the inning off with a walk, and then moved over to second on a Joe Sibeto sacrifice bunt. Two batters later, O’Brien would steal third, and the Copperheads catcher sent the ball flying into left field, as O’Brien trotted home for the game winning run.
John Bakke got his second start of the season for the Red and Blue and threw a dandy on the bump. The Huntsville, Alabama native went 5.2 innings deep, surrendering only two earned runs, and sending five Copperheads back to the dug out via the strikeout.
After struggling to score runs in the two previous games, the Pride offense responded on Tuesday night, scoring five runs on only three hits. Although you may have not of heard the ball popping off the bat much, the plate presence sure showed. The 13 walks the Pride drew is a new season high.
The top three hitters in the line up all picked up RBI’s on the night. Richard De La Cruz was 1-for-1 on the night, drawing three base on balls and knocking in his second run of the season. Scottie Lee drove in his sixth run of the season, good for the team lead in that category.
The Red and Blue jumped out to an early lead in the bottom of the first. Bam Thomas smacked a single to right field, scoring Mark Engel from second. The Pride offense forced the Copperheads starting pitcher to throw 25 pitches in just the first inning.
The Copperheads would take their first lead of the ball game in the top of the third, using three hits to plate two runs and take a 2-1 lead.
The Pride would not have to wait to respond the Lake Norman, as Reagan Lawlor would lead the home half of the third with a walk. After a pass ball, and then a balk on the Copperhead pitcher, Scottie Lee would ground out to the short stop, scoring Lawlor from third and tying the game.
The dead-lock would be broken In the bottom of the fourth, as the pride used one hit and four walks to take the lead, 4-2. Richard De La Cruz and Reagan Lawlor both picked up RBI’s in the inning.
The Pride will be back in action on Thursday, June 6th as the Red and Blue head to the city of Concord, North Carolina for our first match up with the Concord Athletics in 2019. Thursday will be a double header with first pitch in game 1 scheduled for 5 P.M
