Warbirds Stifle Howlers Comeback to Split Series

A Nick Monile home run in the eighth halted the Hill City Howlers comeback as the Wilson Warbirds hung on to win 11-6 on Sunday afternoon.

The Warbirds, despite being held to six hits, found ways to capitalize on walks and Howlers mistakes to put 11 runs on the board. With the win, Wilson earned a split of the series.

Wilson erupted in the third inning as a wild pitch allowed Yannick Walther to score. A sacrifice fly from Juan Ortuño plated a second before a two-run double from Pedro Ibarguen pushed the lead to four.

In the fourth, the Warbrids continued piling on as as Jadyn Fielder blasted his second home run of the season, adding two more runs to their total. A single from Handelfy Encarnacion plated another before Ortuño drove home one more with a sacrifice fly, pushing the lead to 8-0.

The Howlers finally cracked the scoreboard in the fifth inning as Anthony Martinez continued his hot stretch with an RBI single that scored Dauri Fernandez, cutting the deficit to seven.

The seventh saw the Howlers mount a comeback, scoring five in the frame. Two-run homers from Juneiker Cacers and Anthony Martinez had Hill City rolling with no one out. Johan Rodriguez blooped a single to make it an 8-6 game, with still no outs recorded.

However, three straight outs to end the frame kept Wilson in front. In the eighth, Nick Monile stunned the momentum with his first professional home run, a three-run shot that took the air out of the sails of the Howlers.

Hill City went quietly in the eighth and ninth as well, as Wilson secured the split of the series.

The Howlers hit the road for a two-week road trip against the Augusta GreenJackets and the Hickory Crawdads beginning on Tuesday. Hill City will return home on Tuesday, June 30 for a two-week homestand of their own as the Fayetteville Woodpeckers are in town for the Fourth of July series. Tickets for the homestand are available at hchowlers.com.