The visiting Georgetown Tigers plated a pair of runs in the eighth inning and one more in the ninth to force extra innings, then completed the come-from-behind win with two scores in the top of the 10th to knock off the Rams 8-6 Friday evening at Bowen Field.
Bluefield falls to 17-22 on the year, 5-13 in Mid-South Conference games, while the Tigers improve to 26-14, 13-6 MSC.
Senior
Sean Williams had another strong outing for the Rams, pitching 8 plus innings before being relieved in the top of the ninth frame. Williams struck out 10 and allowed four earned runs.
Zac Russell-Myers received the loss for Bluefield, while Georgetown's Chris Villalobos took the victory after throwing the final two innings and striking out four.
The Rams struck first, plating three runs in the third inning.
Trevor Martin hit his sixth homerun of the season, driving home both
Kahlin Villines and
Will Simpson. Villines reached on a fielder's choice, while Simpson had a base knock.
Georgetown quickly responded with three runs of their own. Mike Steinke and Jordan Hinshaw began the inning with back-to-back doubles, while designated hitter Martin Lemus made it three singles in a row. Both Steinke and Hinshaw scored on the hit. Ryan Serrato continued the rally with a double, driving in Lemus. Williams struck out E.J. Murry and forced a pop out and a ground out to get out of the inning.
The Rams broke the tie with three more runs in the bottom of the fifth frame. Simpson began the inning with a single, while Russell-Myers added one with one out. Simpson scored on the hit as a Georgetown outfielder mishandled the single. A
Jamie Blackwell double drove home Russell-Myers. Blackwell then scored as the Tigers looked to get the fielder's choice at third base, but a wild throw allowed Blackwell to advance home.
The game remained 6-3 in favor of Bluefield until the visitors began their comeback in the eighth inning. Steinke began the inning with a walk, while Williams proceeded to retire the next two batters. Serrato struck out next, but a passed ball allowed the runner to reach base. A Murray double then drove in two Tigers to pull the score to 6-5, Rams. Murray was thrown out trying to advance to third base following a throw home.
In the ninth, David Higuera reached on Williams' second walk of the game. Russell-Myers then came in to pitch. After a sacrifice bunt, Higuera advanced to third on a wild pitch, then scored on a two-out, two-strike Justin Moore triple.
The Rams could not plate a run in the bottom of the ninth, while the Tigers struck for two more runs on three hits in the top of the 10th. Murray once again came through for Georgetown with his second straight double.
Villalobos closed out the 10th, retiring the Rams in order.
Martin led the Rams with three RBIs, while Murray was the hero for Georgetown with four late-inning RBIs.
The teams will square off at Bowen Field once again tomorrow, with nine and seven-inning games to conclude the conference series. The Rams will recognize their seniors as part of their final home games. First pitch for game one is scheduled for 1 p.m.