LATE RALLY FORCES EXTRAS, BUT TWINS FALL IN BURLINGTON 9-8

Burlington, N.C. - The Elizabethton Twins scored five runs between the eighth and ninth innings to twice tie the game and force extra innings, but the Burlington Royals scored in the bottom of the 10th to walk off the Twins and win the second game of the series, 9-8.
Elizabethton took an early lead, scoring one in the second on a Kyle Schmidt single and two in the third on a Matt Wallner two-run homer. Despite losing their lead and trailing by four runs as the eighth inning began, the Twins did not give up and scored four runs to tie the score at 7-7.
Parker Phillips was hit by a pitch to begin the eighth and Charles Mack doubled him in to bring Elizabethton within three. After Anthony Prato walked, the Royals called upon Elliott Anderson to face Will Holland.
Holland and Anderson played three years together at Auburn University and were both drafted in 2019. On a 1-2 pitch, Holland crushed a three-run home run to center off his former college teammate to tie the game.
While the Twins loaded the bases after Holland's homer with just one out, Elizabethton couldn't score, and the game stayed tied heading to the bottom of the eighth.
Ben Gross struggled in his seventh start of the season, not able to pitch out of the third inning. He threw 2.2 innings while allowing five runs on six hits and two walks. Osiris German relieved him after surrendering five runs in the third inning and pitched the next three innings, allowing two runs on three hits.
After Burlington added on runs in the fifth and sixth, Steven Cruz pitched 1.1 scoreless, allowing just two hits and keeping the score within reach, allowing the Twins to tie in the eighth.
Frandy Torres took over after Cruz and allowed Burlington to take the lead once more in the bottom of the eighth on a pair of two-out hits. 
Elizabethton was able to tie the score once more in the ninth on an RBI single from Anthony Prato that scored Wallner. Torres pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning to force extras, but the Twins couldn't score in the 10th and the Royals walked off with one out in the bottom of the inning.
The E-Twins send Andriu Marin the mound Wednesday, as they look to avoid the sweep with a 6:30 p.m. first pitch scheduled in Burlington.
For tickets and more information, visit elizabethtontwins.com.