Comeback Falls Short In Playoff Loss
August 6, 2012 - Coastal Plain League (Coastal Plain)
Wilmington Sharks News Release
Wilmington, N.C. - The Wilmington Sharks left the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth inning and fell to the Columbia Blowfish by a final score of 9-5 in the first game of the 2012 Petitt Cup Playoffs.
Hoggard High graduate Scott Coleman showed that he isn't ready to hang up the cleats for the summer, going a perfect 5-for-5 with a pair of doubles plus a run and an RBI. However, his effort wasn't quite enough to help his team complete the comeback.
After Coleman scored the game's first run on an Alex Freedman sacrifice fly in the second, the Blowfish bounced back and took a 2-1 advantage in the top of the fourth.
In the seventh inning, each of the first three visiting batters reached on infield singles, including two bunts. All of those runners would score on a Joshua Miller double with one out. Miller also came around to score what proved to be the game winning run, as the Blowfish then had a 6-1 lead.
Wilmington showed life after the stretch, scoring three times with two outs in the bottom half of the seventh. A Casey Goss single was followed by an Aaron Preston triple, then a Lloyd Enzor base knock preceded Coleman's second extra-base hit all in consecutive order after the first two batters were retired to open the half-inning.
An insurance run was added by Columbia in the top of the eighth, then the Sharks' threat in the ninth fell just short. Brad Shaban drew a leadoff walk, then with two outs Enzor and Coleman each recorded hits to load up the bags, with Connor Mitchell driving in Shaban to account for the final 7-5 score.
With the loss, the Sharks must win back-to-back games at Columbia's Capital City Stadium to continue their season into the second round of the playoffs. To follow the team on their journey towards a Petitt Cup Championship, find the team on the web at wilmingtonsharks.com, at twitter.com/ILMSharks, or on facebook.com/sharks.baseball.
Coastal Plain League Stories from August 6, 2012
- Owls Advance to Petitt Cup Semifinals - Forest City Owls
- 2012 Season in Review - Morehead City Marlins
- Season Ends in Playoff Sweep - Wilmington Sharks
- Comeback Falls Short In Playoff Loss - Wilmington Sharks
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
