Braden Pingel delivered an RBI single with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 9th to send the Hoptown Hoppers past the visiting Madisonville Miners in walk-off fashion on Wednesday at Hopkinsville High School.
The Hoppers evened their record at 4-4 with their fourth victory in the last five outings and nudged ahead 2-1 in the season series with the Miners.
Brayden Eftink’s run-scoring single gave Hoptown the lead in the bottom of the 1st inning before the Miners pushed a pair of runs across in the 3rd to move in front. A Hopper error allowed another run to score in the top of the 4th, but Hoptown rallied to tie the game on back-to-back RBI singles by Gavin Lake and Sam Perkins in the 5th.
The Miners used a two-out rally in the top of the 7th to take a 4-3 advantage on another Hopper miscue, setting the stage for some late-inning heroics by the home team. Hoptown used three pitchers to retire the Miners in the top of the 9th, with Perkins taking the mound to end the inning with a strikeout.
Madisonville’s first error of the night put the leadoff batter on in the bottom of the frame, followed by a hit-by-pitch to put the tying run on second. Lake knotted the game at 4-4 with an RBI double, and an intentional walk loaded the bases with one out. Pingel only needed to see one pitch to send everyone home, singling to right field to bring in the winning run.
Perkins’ brief appearance on the mound earned him the win, the last of a parade of seven Hopper pitchers. Lake and John Kiebler led the way with two hits each, with Eftink, Perkins, Pingel, and Devin Kiebler each adding a hit.
Four Miners had a hit each, with Nazhir Bergen and Fred Fernandez each driving in a run.
Hoptown will look to move above .500 for the first time this season when they host the Paducah Chiefs on Thursday. Paducah prevailed 7-5 in the teams’ first meeting.
