Norfolk falls in pitcher's duel, 2-1

Four Tides hurlers combined to strike out 10, but Charlotte edged Norfolk 2-1 Sunday afternoon at Harbor Park.

Tides starter T.J. McFarland was sharp in his season debut, as he yielded one run on four hits in four innings of work. McFarland struck out five - including striking out the side in the second inning - without walking a batter.

McFarland gave way to Tim Alderson (0-1), who surrendered an RBI double to Matt Davidson in the fifth inning in his two innings of work. Kelvin De La Cruz and Brock Huntzinger followed Alderson with three shutout innings of relief, but the group performance was not enough to prevent the Tides (1-3) from dropping their opening series.

Charlotte starter Dylan Axelrod (1-0) earned the win after allowing one run on six hits in five innings of work. Axelrod struck out seven without walking a batter, with the Tides plating their only run against him in the fifth inning on RBI double by Ivan De Jesus.

David Purcey and Ryan Kussmaul allowed one hit over four innings in relief of Axelrod, with Kussmaul recording the final six outs for his first save of the season.

The Tides continue their season opening homestand Monday night at Harbor Park as the Gwinnett Braves come to town for the opener of a four-game set. Suk-min Yoon is set to make his Norfolk debut and will be opposed by right-hander Zach Stewart.

Notes: The Tides and Knights played the entire four-game series without either team holding a lead larger than three runs…Johnny Monell made his first appearance of the season (going 1-for-4 with a run scored), joining his father Johnny Sr. to become the first father-son duo to play for the Tides franchise…Jemile Weeks singled in the third inning to extend his hitting streak to four games, over which he's batted .500 (6-for-12)…The Tides went 1-for-17 with runners in scoring position over the final two games of the series…Through four games, Norfolk's pitchers have registered 43 strikeouts while walking 11 in 36.0 innings.