BURLINGTON, N.C. - The Sock Puppets and Axmen squared off in the finale of their two-game set with Burlington completing the sweep in an 8-6 contest, further cementing themselves as the best team in the Appalachian League. However, the Axmen did not go down without a fight.
Burlington was the first team on the board yet again, this time with a five-run second inning that was sparked by an RBI single by Avery Smith. The Burlington bats kept going after that and the lead was 5-0 heading into the third.
A sixth run was tacked to the board when Caiden Combs launched his first home run out of Burlington Athletic Stadium, making it a 6-0 contest.
A sac-fly from Kam Durnin scored the first run for Kingsport, but with two more runs, Burlington held an 8-1 lead heading into the eighth inning.
Things seemed bleak for Kingsport, but with two outs and one on base Colin Larson singled through the right side to bring in the second run of the game home for the Axmen.
Just two batters later, Durnin reached on a fielding error by the Burlington shortstop Dom Krupinski that also scored a run. A wild pitch followed by a passed ball scored the next two and heading into the ninth it was an 8-5 Burlington lead.
PJ Jones started the frame off with a bang as he launched his second homer of the season.
It was then 8-6 with runners on the corners and the go-ahead run at the plate was Larson. Larson and Logan Hartley were locked in a battle, but a swing and a miss from Larson ended the game.
Kingsport falls to 6-5, while Burlington soars to 9-3 on the year. Up next, the Axmen will travel to Danville for the next two nights as they get ready to take on the 2-10 Otterbots.
