A 5-4 victory at Chester County, TN on Saturday gave the Hopkinsville baseball team its fifth-straight win to start the season, but the Eagles rallied for a 7-5 win in the second matchup of a doubleheader to hand the Tigers their first defeat.
The Tigers got on the front foot from the start in the opener, with Zach Moss driving in a run with a double and Dylan Sweeney following with an RBI single for a 3-0 Hoptown advantage.
However, a two-run Tiger error allowed the Eagles to cut the lead to 4-2, and neither team could score over the next two frames.
A two-out rally in the sixth would be decisive for Hopkinsville, with Dylan Sweeney’s RBI single giving the Tigers a 5-2 edge with an inning to play. JJ Thompson finished his day on the mound with his 13th strikeout to retire the first batter in the seventh, before giving way to Sweeney.
The Eagles put runners on first and second with a single and a walk, and a Tiger error allowed two runs to score and cut the lead to 5-4. But with the tying run on first, Sweeney battled back from a 3-1 count to notch a strikeout and end the game.
In the second contest, the Tigers put runners on with a Gavin Powell single and a walk before a pair of Chester errors on the same play put Hopkinsville in front 2-0.
Andrew Mayes was in control on the mound over the first four frames for the Tigers, but a pair of errors and a walk helped the Eagles break through. With a chance to get out of the inning, a Hoptown error brought home two runs to put Chester County in front for good, and another Tiger miscue saw two more runners cross the plate to make it 5-2.
Jayce Goff smacked a two-run home run to stretch the Eagles’ lead to five runs before the Tigers mounted a comeback in their final at-bat. A two-out error and a walk put runners on first and third, and the Eagles’ third error of the game and a Moss single brought in a pair of runs.
Sweeney followed with an RBI triple to pull the Tigers to within two runs, but with the tying run at the plate, a fly out to centerfield ended the game.
Sweeney had four hits and drove in three runs over two games, and Moss also collected four hits and added two RBI. Powell finished with three hits, and Chase Fort was 2/3 in the second game.
Mayes took the loss, allowing seven runs, only two earned, on six hits with three walks and five strikeouts over six innings.
Caleb Cole earned the win for the Eagles with three and a third innings of work, surrendering three runs, none earned, on two hits with a pair of walks.
Hopkinsville will be on the road on Monday looking to start another win streak at Trigg County. The Tigers have won the last three in the series, including a 9-3 victory earlier this season.
