WILSON, NC – It was a close one at Historic Fleming Stadium on Tuesday night. For the second consecutive game, the Marlins lost—this time to the Tobs, by a final of 4-3 in Wilson
“Pleased that we stayed in it and gave ourselves a chance to win at the end of the game,” said Marlins head coach Jesse Lancaster. “We have to execute better early in games offensively, and we still haven’t put a great pitching performance together in a minute. I’m also going to take some of the blame for it tonight, I was a little reactive rather than proactive when it came to the pitching moves. But we’ve got lots of work to do, and I’m confident that we’ll do it.”
Even though Morehead City fell, it struck first.
In the top of the fourth inning, Conner VanCleave (Pittsburg St) earned an RBI double to left field that drove in Hunter Shepherd (Catawba), who got aboard via a double. They were the only two hits the Marlins earned. Dashon Moore (Georgetown IL) would increase the Marlin lead in the fourth, getting hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. VanCleave followed it up in the top of the fifth, scoring Jack Harris (Newberry) on a sacrifice fly.
After that, it was all Wilson.
Former Marlin Dusty Baker ripped a 2-run RBI triple to right field to get Wilson on the board in the bottom of the sixth. Logan Eickhoff followed it up, tying the game with an RBI single to center field. Braedon Blackford, who racked up five RBIs in Wilson’s last outing against Holly Springs, was the hero once again for the Tobs. The right fielder hit an RBI single to right field in the bottom of the seventh inning.
VanCleave kept the Marlins in the game, going 1 for 4 in five at bats, with two RBIs.
On the mound, Johnathan Lavallee (Long Beach State) held his ground. The right-handed pitcher went for five innings, giving up seven hits, three earned runs, two walks and four strikeouts. Lavallee earned a no decision.
Cam Seguin (Elon) followed Lavallee, earning the loss. The southpaw threw an inning and a third innings pitched, giving up three hits, an earned run and two strikeouts.
Ryder Yakel (Harding) came after Seguin, and did Ryder Yakel things. The usual closer for the Marlins went for an inning and two-thirds, giving up neither a run nor a hit, striking out two and walking one.
The Marlins fall to 3-2 in second half play, and are now in second place in the CPL East by half a game. Morehead City’s next chance to bounce back is in Tri-City on Thursday night against the Chili Peppers. First pitch is set for 7:00. Listen live on the Morehead City Marlins Radio Network.