JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. - A powerful day at the plate propelled the Doughboys to their third straight win, 12-3, over Elizabethton.
The game was all River Riders to start, as Elizabethton would plate three in the top half of the third inning.
The Doughboys wouldn't let that sit for long, with an Eduardo Morales double driving in the first run before Braden Spano would homer the opposite way, tying the ballgame up.
After the shaky first, Johnson City starter Owen Slater would settle in and find a groove, not allowing a runner past second for the remainder of his start.
The fourth inning would be the separation inning for Johnson City. The Doughboys would send ten hitters to the plate, scoring four runs, headlined once again by Braden Spano doubling in a run.
Slater's start would conclude after the fifth, with the bullpen again coming in and shutting things down. Andrew McCormick would spin a pair of scoreless innings, holding the Doughboys' lead at four.
The top offensive team in the Appalachian League wouldn't be done yet, as Spano again would double, extending the lead to 9-3.
A pair of scoreless innings from Brooks Chamberlin would allow the Doughboys to add more insurance in the eighth, and they'd do just that.
The Doughboys would put their first three runners on base in the eighth, with Carson Kerce singling in a run. Austin Lemon would close things out with a two-run double, ballooning the Johnson City lead to nine at 12-3.
Bryce McCain would come in and slam the door on Elizabethton, shutting down the ballgame and closing out a 12-3 Doughboys win.
The win, Johnson City's third in a row, moves the Doughboys to 9-7 on the season and within a half-game of first place in the Appalachian League West.
The Doughboys will look to sweep Elizabethton Sunday at 5:30 p.m.
