Axmen Claim a Thriller to Secure Playoff Bid
ApL Kingsport Axmen

Axmen Claim a Thriller to Secure Playoff Bid

Published on July 29, 2026 under Appalachian League (ApL)
Kingsport Axmen News Release


KINGSPORT, Tenn. - The Axmen took down the Elizabethton River Riders in a thrilling 10-7 ballgame to clinch a spot in the 2026 playoffs. This is the third straight year that Kingsport will play in the semifinal.

Offensively, the Axmen were led by Carter Geffre, Seth Farni and Cash Williams, each of whom recorded a home run in the contest. Down the stretch, Easton Beach emerged as the hero, going 4-for-5 on the night.

The playoff implications were high: The River Riders needed a victory to stay attached in the playoff race, and the Axmen were a win away from clinching a playoff berth.

Neither team expected the back-and-forth battle that ensued, and no one expected how important the long ball would be.

The contest started as a close affair as the River Riders came out fiery with a leadoff double from Bo Strickland that was then paid off by an RBI single from Miles Shore.

Elizabethton then snagged another run, this time from a Strickland RBI double.

The Axmen were kept quiet in the first three innings, but the River Riders only managed to gather a 2-0 lead.

Then the first domino fell, a two-run homer from the bat of Geffre, to tie the contest up.

However, as quick as Kingsport tied the game, the lead was then lost almost immediately. Elizabethton was able to score two runs in the fifth without a hit in sight. Walks that were turned into runs by groundouts put E-Town back up 4-2.

With a quick response from the River Riders, the Axmen needed an answer of their own, and they found it in the barrel of Kingsport's Williams.

Williams mashed his seventh long ball of the season, but still it wasn't enough to erase the Elizabethton lead. That was until the next inning.

With runners on second and third, Farni took his turn to shine by mashing a baseball over the scoreboard in right field teetering the contest in favor of the Axmen 6-4.

With the Axmen having the lead Elizabethton had trailed the first time all contest, and the counter they were looking for was in the most unlikely way.

Known as a contact hitter, Mikey Vanderhayden has made a killing this season, but in the most opportune time, he launched his first home run over the left-field wall of Ballad Health Field.

Once again the contest was tied and it seemed like momentum might keep the Axmen down. However, after the first out was recorded in the seventh, second baseman Brady Richardson proceeded to drop a routine flyball in the infield to put a go-ahead run in scoring position.

Beach was the next batter to the plate. After taking the first two offerings, Beach cranked the third one down the left-field line, scoring Geffre. The tie was broken and then Kingsport added on with an Antonio Fawcett double that scored Beach.

Even then after a hard fought game it seemed as if the Axmen would begin to pull away, but Elizabethton proved pesky. To lead off the eighth, Nick Riordan launched his third home run of the season out of the yard on a payoff pitch from Jude Favela, pulling the contest back within one, 8-7.

Favela got through the inning, and luckily his offense grabbed his back. In the same inning Kingsport put up two runs with two outs, the first on an infield single from Beach and the second scored on a wild pitch from Luke Billings.

With the 10-7 advantage, Favela had the cushion he needed to finish off Elizabethton, striking out two batters in the ninth.

Even with the clinched playoff berth, the Axmen are not guaranteed to host the game at Ballad Health Field at Hunter Wright Stadium. To obtain home field advantage the Axmen must win one more game in the series or have Johnson City drop a game to Greeneville.

Check out the Kingsport Axmen Statistics

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Appalachian League Stories from July 29, 2026


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