by James Stanley, Wilson Tobs Director of Media Relations and Broadcasting
HOLLY SPRINGS, N.C. – The Wilson Tobs (18-16, 8-6) won their third straight game on Friday night after a 14-1 thrashing of the Holly Springs Salamanders (20-18, 7-9) at Ting Sadium.
The scoring started off the bat of Brainy Rojas (East Stroudsburg) in the top of the 2nd when he singled in a run off of Salamanders starting pitcher Braydon Tucker (Indiana) to put Wilson in front 1-0.
In the 3rd, the Tobs rallied with two outs to score five runs to pad their lead to 6-0. Griffin Everitt (Nebraska) drove in Braedon Blackford (Purdue-Ft. Wayne) on an RBI single to plate the first Tobs run of the frame. Rojas followed with a consecutive RBI base hit to bring in Wilson’s second run. The third and fourth runs of the inning crossed home plate on a throwing error charged to Tucker while Eickhoff scored the last run of the frame on a wild pitch.
In the 4th inning, Everitt hit a two-RBI single into centerfield to widen Wilson’s lead to 8-0.
The Salamanders scored their only run of the night in the 5th inning when Tobs starting pitcher Peter Schaefer (Johns Hopkins) surrendered an RBI base hit to Caleb Denny (Oral Roberts) putting Holly Springs behind 8-1.
Derrick Carter (North Carolina Wesleyan) debuted for the Tobs in the 6th inning when he relived Schaefe. Aided by strikeouts and a stark defensive play by Blackford, Carter hung zeros on the board in the 6th and 7th innings to keep the Salamanders in an 8-1 hole.
The Tobs scored three runs in the 8th inning to lead by 10 runs. With no outs and the bases loaded, Everitt drew an RBI walk to drive in Drew DeVine (Western Michigan) extending the Tobs’ lead to 9-1. Rojas followed by hitting his third RBI single of the night to make it 10-1 Wilson. Dusty Baker (Mount Olive) capped off the scoring with a productive RBI groundout to first base that plated Blackford giving the Tobs an even wider lead at 11-1.
In the bottom of the 8th, Michael Yuille (Barton College) took over the reins from Carter and pitched a 1-2-3 frame in relief to keep Holly Springs down by 10 runs.
Wilson scored three more runs in the 9th to put the game out of reach. Blackford doubled in a run to start the scoring. Everitt continued the scoring with an RBI base knock on his fifth RBI of the night. The third run of the frame scored to make it 14-1 Wilson on an RBI single by Logan Eickhoff (Eastern Illinois).
Kolton Scherbenske (UNC-Charlotte) relieved Yuille in the 9th and sealed the 14-1 victory on a pair of strikeouts. Scherbenske finished the night with 1.0 scoreless inning pitched.
The win was awarded to Schaefer after he fanned five batters in 5.0 innings of work. He allowed one run on four hits and three walks.
Tucker received the loss after allowing six runs on eight hits in 2.2 innings pitched.
Carter pitched 2.0 shutout innings in relief on three strikeouts while allowing one hit and one base on balls.
In 1.0 relief inning pitched, Yuille allowed no runs on no hits without allowing a base runner.
On Saturday, the Tobs return to War Memorial Stadium as they square off against the Peninsula Pilots at 7:00 p.m. ET. Fans can stream the game on FloBaseball.TV or listen to the game for free on Mixlr by clicking here.
The Tobs return home to Historic Fleming Stadium on Sunday to take on the Wilmington Sharks at 6:00 p.m. ET. Join the Tobs for Christmas in July presented by Denny’s with a special appearance by Santa Claus! Gates open at 5. Arrive early to take advantage of all the deals on Cash Saver Sunday sponsored by State Farm Jana Lake: $1 T.L. Herring hotdogs, $2 nachos and $2 snocones. Fans can stream the game on FloBaseball.TV or watch locally for free on Greenlight Channels 2 and 900-HD.
The Wilson Tobs enter their 25th season as a founding member of the Coastal Plain League. The upcoming season for the Tobs will see community outreach, increased participation in helping the less fortunate, a Pettit Cup Championship team, and more exciting entertainment than ever before. We would like to dedicate each successful season to the Wilson Community, Coastal Plain League Organization, Host Families, Corporate Partners, and the Dedicated Fans.
The Wilson Tobs have played host to over 100 alumni taken in the draft and have produced a dozen players who have gone on to play in the MLB, including Cy Young MVP winner Justin Verlander. For more information on the Wilson Tobs, visit our website www.WilsonTobs.com.