JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – Trailing by two runs in the bottom of the eighth, the Greeneville Flyboys went on to give up eight runs to the Johnson City Doughboys, dropping their fifth straight game, 14-4, on Wednesday.
The Flyboys offense opened the offense in the top of the first, as a Cameron LaLiberte (Arizona) RBI double scored Andrew Pinkston (Northwestern) to give Greeneville the early 1-0 lead. Later in the frame, a Dub Gleed (UC Irvine) RBI single scored Myles Smith (UC Irvine) to push the advantage to 2-0.
Johnson City answered in the bottom of the second, as a McKay Barney (Washington) single scored Matt Miceli (Stony Brook) to cut the lead to 2-1. Michael Moss (Seton Hall) tied the game at two runs apiece later in the frame with an RBI single to score Emilio Morales (Orange County CC).
After a fielding error by Ashton King (ETSU), Smith came into score for the Flyboys in the top of the third, giving Greeneville the 3-2.
The lead was short-lived for the Flyboys, as Miceli recorded a two-RBI triple to score Roberto Peña (Tulane) and Jared Johnson (Brown) to give Johnson City a 4-3 lead in the bottom of the third.
Greeneville tied the game in the top of the fifth after a Jack O’Reilly (Villanova) sac fly scored LaLiberte to deadlock the contest at four.
The Doughboys took back the lead with an emphatic two-run home run in the bottom of the fifth by Peña over the left field wall, taking a 6-4 advantage. Peña has hit six home runs this season, with three of those coming in the last four games against the Flyboys.
In the bottom of the eighth, the wheels completely fell off for the Flyboys, beginning with Barney scoring on a wild pitch by Seth Whitley (Appalachian State) to push the lead to 7-4. A sac fly by Moss scored Barney to double the lead to 8-4. King (ETSU) drew a bases-loaded walk later in the inning to bring home Scott Combs (NIU) to push the lead to 9-4. A wild pitch by Carson Jacobs (Gateway CC) allowed Peña to score from third, swelling the lead to 10-4. A grand slam over the right field by Caleb Marmo (Walters State) finished off the Flyboys, giving Johnson City the 14-4 victory.
Peña led Johnson City batting, going 2-for-3 with two RBI and three runs scored. Marmo went 2-for-3 with four RBI and two runs scored.
David Utagawa (Northwestern) (3-2) earns the win for the Doughboys, going five innings, giving up four runs, three of those earned, off five hits, walking two and striking out four. Ty Cobb (Walters State) went two innings in relief, giving up two hits and striking out one batter. Gavin Bates (Iona) went one inning out of the pen, striking out one. Michael Esposito (South Carolina) closed out the game for Johnson City, allowing two hits and striking out two in the ninth inning.
Caleb Jones (Winthrop) (0-2) was handed the loss, going two innings, giving up two runs off four hits, walking two and striking out one. Riley Taylor (Oklahoma State) started the game for the Flyboys, going three innings, giving up four runs off five hits, walking two and striking out five. Brian Yetter (Marist) rebounded with a solid relief effort, going two innings, and striking out one. Whitley went just 0.1 of an inning, allowing six runs off two hits and walking four. Jacobs went 0.2 of an inning, allowing two runs off one hit and walking one.
The Flyboys will look to rebound against Johnson City tomorrow, July 14, in the final meeting of the season. First pitch is set for 7 p.m. Fans unable to make the trip to TVA Credit Union Ballpark can tune into a free radio broadcast beginning at 6:45 p.m. at flyboysbaseball.com.
