HIGH POINT, N.C. — In a pivotal Big South Conference series against Winthrop, the High Point University baseball team opened the final home slate Friday with a come-from-behind, walk-off victory in extras, 9-8.
Lane Allen hit a sacrifice fly to score
Frank Kelly for the 10th-inning win, which moved the Panthers up the Big South regular-season standings into a tie for first place with the Eagles.
Site: Williard Stadium
Score: High Point 9, Winthrop 8 (10 inn.)
Records: High Point (32-17, 13-6), Winthrop (30-19, 13-6)
Head Coach Joey Hammond: "You certainly don't draw it up that way on a Friday night. I'm sure they didn't either, but it takes what it takes and I'm proud of our guys for hanging in there. We had every reason in the world — down 7-1 in the sixth inning — to mail it in with their closer in the game, but they didn't. It doesn't happen if we don't get four big innings from
Mateo Wells. It doesn't happen if we don't get three innings from
Cam Chalfant, a guy who hasn't thrown a whole lot for us this year and for him to go out there and give us three huge innings, and shutdown innings at that, after we had scored runs was the difference in the game. I felt like we kind of got in our own way with some of our at-bats early in the game, where we had some opportunities and just kind of didn't do what we or what we need to do. But you know, I was really proud of our guys and the resilience for them and how they finished there at the end, and stack and got some big hits.
Marcus Martin, with the base running play in the ninth, was the difference in the game as well coming off the bench, sitting there for nine innings, and then all of a sudden he comes in and he makes an incredible read going from first to third that allowed us to extend the game. So a lot of positives from there, some things that we, we certainly got to do a better job of, but, never going to be upset about winning a game, a pivotal game at that on a Friday night."
It wasn't the start the Panthers envisioned as the Eagles jumped out to a six-run lead through six innings.
Mateo Wells relieved starter
Wade Walton after 1.2 innings, and pitched 4.0 innings where he allowed one earned run on four hits while striking out four.
To start the fifth inning,
Caleb Hammond singled through the left side before scoring on a
Willie Ponce sacrifice fly to plate the Panthers' first run and begin to chip away.
High Point cut into the deficit even more with a three-run sixth frame, which was jumpstarted by a solo shot via
Landen Johnson.
Justin Ruiz smoked a bases-clearing double up the left-field line, scoring
Jace Kohler and Hammond who both singled, to make it a three-run game in favor of the Eagles.
Winthrop opened the seventh with a solo blast to go up, 8-4.
Cam Chalfant relieved
Mac Kimel, who took over for Wells in the sixth, following the homer, and shut them down completely. He held the Eagles scoreless over 3.0 innings while only allowing two hits and striking out a batter.
Then, the offense began to really heat up and catch up.
The Panthers plated another three-run inning, this one coming in the eighth frame. Hammond knocked across his team-high third hit as Ruiz doubled again, and then Ponce scored Hammond and a Ponce steal plated Ruiz. Oh followed with a single to right field to make it a one-run game.
HPU came all the way back to tie it when Kohler knocked in the game-tying run on his birthday with a sacrifice fly to plate
Marcus Martin, who was pinch running for Johnson after his single to begin the ninth. Martin moved himself from first to third and into scoring position thanks to a
Jake McCarter single, which came before Kohler's RBI, to give the Panthers a chance for extras.
In the top of the 10th, Story relieved Chalfant and recorded a perfect frame. Then, in the bottom half, it was Allen who lifted a ball into deep center field to plate Kelly, who joined Kohler celebrating his birthday, as he reached base on a walk then stole second and advanced to third on a balk to put himself in perfect position to seal the deal.
Up Next: The Panthers take on the Eagles in game two of the series, beginning at 4 p.m.
#GoHPU
