Rome Rolls Past Drive, 12-2, Saturday Night

Eight scoreless innings caused the Greenville Drive to drop game five 12-2 to the Rome Emperors. The Drive’s record is now 3-2 in this series. The Emperors improves to 26-32, while the Drive falls to 29-30 in the second-half standings.

Barrett Morgan and Daniel Brooks competed on the mound during four scoreless innings to open game five. Morgan lasted three and one-third innings, giving up no runs, no hits, and striking out four before Adam Bates stepped onto the bump.

Bates collected the final two outs of the fourth, but that was as far as he could contain the Emperors. Ultimately, Rome broke out of its cage for a six-run rally in the fifth, sending a hush through the Fluor Field crowd. His six runs on four hits faulted him for his first loss.

Givian Sirvania and Isaiah Jackson scored two runs for the Drive in the bottom of the frame off a groundout and an RBI single, respectively. Colin Burgess' homer got one back for Rome in the sixth, 7-2, and continued to pile on with consecutive sac-flies in the seventh, stretching their lead to 9-2.

Matt McShane came out to pitch the last two innings for Luis Cohen. He allowed nothing in the eighth, but Will Verdung hit his first home run of the season in the ninth to drive in three more, finalizing a score of 12-2.

Rome had 11 hits. Homers from Carter Beck, Dixon Williams, Burgess, and Verdung are responsible for nine of the Emperors' runs on Saturday. Luis Guanipa had a 3-for-5 night with a couple of runs scored. Verdung's three-run homer and his sac-fly led his team with four RBIs. All Rome batters reached base tonight.

Greenville finished with six hits, going 1-for-9 with seven runners left on. Nazzan Zanetello was the only Drive hitter with two hits. Jackson and Sirvania with an RBI. Hull has reached base in all 18 games he’s played.

Brooks went a strong four innings with no runs, no hits, and five strikeouts in his start for Rome. However, it was David Rodriguez’s consecutive 1-2-3 innings in the back half of the game that earned him the win.

The Greenville Drive plays for the series win in the finale tomorrow against the Rome Emperors with first pitch at 3:05 PM. Sunday is First Responders Day. The event starts at 1 PM on District 356 with Heroes Alley, a touch-a-truck event featuring first responder vehicles, and then the Heroes Softball game, immediately following the Drive's last game of the season, pitting the City of Greenville's Police and Fire teams against each other for a very good cause. Kids Run the Bases, presented by Blue Cross Blue Shield SC.