KINGSPORT, Tenn. — The Axmen hosted rival Elizabethton, and in the concluding contest of the season between the two, Kingsport got the last laugh with a dominant 14-2 victory Friday.
While this had been the 31st game of the season for both teams, Kingsport local Mark Davis celebrated his 1,000th Kingsport game. This includes all the way back to 2000, when Mark began coming to Kingsport Mets games. He cheered on his Axmen all game long en route to the win.
However, it was Elizabethton who got the first punch when Jack Torbett scored on a wild pitch and Lennox Lively drove in a run with his single.
The Axmen were held scoreless in the first but put up a run in the second to make the score 2-1. But then, somehow, someway, the script flipped.
The Axmen stormed out in front in the third with a five-run inning. Ben Tryon had two RBIs on his double, Ty Denton drove in a run with a single, and Alex Kelsey scored two more with a single of his own.
As for the River Riders, they couldn’t get anything going. A hit there and a walk there, but Elizabethton just had no answer.
Kingsport continued the downpour well into the game. Kam Durnin hit his fourth home run of the season, Derrick Pitts continued his great week, and the offense was just too hot to handle.
The Axmen held Elizabethton scoreless for the rest of the game, and the Axmen took home the 14-2 win, and bragging rights.
Bleau Kennedy was given the win in his first outing in a Kingsport uniform. Kaleb Johnson was given credit for a hold, as he tossed three scoreless innings in relief.
Kingsport now is only a half-game behind first-place Greeneville. Those two teams will meet Tuesday and Wednesday.
