Late Hot Rods Home Run Sends Tourists to Third Straight Defeat

BOWLING GREEN- The Asheville Tourists dropped a roller coaster of a ballgame on Wednesday night in Bowling Green by a final score of 8-7. Asheville battled back from an early hole and captured the lead in the middle innings. Bowling Green jumped back in front before the Tourists tied the score 7-7; however, with two outs in the eighth, the Hot Rods took the lead for good.

Asheville took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning on Korey Lee’s first Home Run of the season. The Hot Rods tied the score at one apiece in the bottom of the frame. In the third, Bowling Green rallied for four runs and loaded the bases before Asheville could record an out. The Tourists escaped further damage by turning an inning-ending triple play.

The defensive gem sparked the offense. Asheville plated a pair of unearned runs in the fourth and added three more in the fifth to take a 6-5 lead. Alex Holderbach’s two-run Home Run was the go-ahead shot.

Bowling Green used a two-run double in the bottom of the fifth to retake the lead but once again Asheville had an answer. In the top of the sixth, Alex McKenna drove in A.J. Lee from third with a game-tying groundout.

The score remained tied as the Tourists turned to Felipe Tejada on the mound. Tejada went 2.2 innings, did not give up a hit, and struck out seven. With two outs and the bases empty in the bottom of the eighth, Tejada hit his pitch count limit and departed. The next pitch was sent over the right field wall by Bowling Green’s Jonathan Aranda.

The Tourists put two men aboard to begin the top of the ninth but three consecutive outs sealed the win for the Hot Rods.