Drive Stunned by Shorebirds in Extras

Salisbury, MD - A strong start to Thursday's game by the Greenville Drive ended in disappointing fashion, as the Delmarva Shorebirds came back from a 5-0 deficit to force extra innings and ended up with a 9-8 victory in 11 innings.

Trailing 5-2 in the bottom of the eighth, the Shorebirds (19-8) scored four runs to take the lead. An RBI single by Zach Jarrett and a two-run double by Trevor Craport tied the game at five, and a Drive (5-22) error brought in the go-ahead run.
The Drive answered back in the top of the ninth as Cole Brannen doubled and later scored on a Shorebirds error that tied things up at six.
Extra innings proved to be a seesaw affair from the get-go. The teams traded runs in the 10^th inning, as Kervin Suarez brought home Jagger Rusconi with an RBI single for the Drive, and the Shorebirds received an RBI single from T.J. Nichting to make it 7-7.
Lorenzo Cedrola capped a big offensive day with an RBI single in the top of the 11^th to put the Drive back ahead, but with the Delmarva runner beginning the bottom half on second, a hit by pitch and a walk loaded the bases. Kirvin Moesquit was hit by a pitch to tie the game at eight, setting the stage for Mason McCoy, who singled to right off Devon Fisher (0-2) to end the game.
Greenville starter Alex Scherff made the best start of his young professional career, and received an unfortunate no-decision. The right-hander kept the Shorebirds off the scoreboard for five innings while allowing two hits and one walk with four strikeouts.
Victor Acosta put the Drive up 2-0 on his own thanks to RBI singles in the third and fifth innings. 
The Drive scored three more times in the sixth to extend the lead to 5-0. Suarez brought in a run after grounding into a fielder's choice, and that was followed by RBI hits from Ricardo Cubillan and Cedrola.
Delmarva's comeback began in the sixth thanks to an RBI groundout by McCoy and a run-scoring single by Nichting.
Cedrola paced the Greenville offense by going 3-5 with two runs and two RBI atop the lineup. Acosta, Rusconi and Suarez added two hits apiece on the day.
The Drive will look to pick up the pieces on Friday night as their road trip continues with a four-game series against the Greensboro Grasshoppers, an affiliate of the Miami Marlins. First pitch on Friday is at 7:00 in Greensboro. Left-hander Jhonathan Diaz (1-2, 4.44) will start the opener for the Drive, and he will be opposed by Grasshoppers right-hander Edward Cabrera (0-2, 3.57).
~Greenville Drive~