BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (May 8, 2026) — Brooklyn’s offense came alive Friday night, as 2B Mitch Voit drove in a career-high four runs and three Cyclones homered in a 7-2 victory over the Bowling Green Hot Rods at Bowling Green Ballpark.
Brooklyn’s (8-21) pitching staff was equally dominant, tying a season high with 18 strikeouts. RHP Channing Austin recorded a career-best 10 strikeouts over 4.1 innings, while LHP Gregori Louis (1-0), RHP Bryce Jenkins, and RHP Cristofer Gomez combined to retire the final 10 batters in order and punch out eight.
After a scoreless first inning, Brooklyn broke through with two outs in the second. LF John Bay launched the second pitch he saw off the top of the brick wall in left field and out of the stadium for his third home run of the season, giving the Cyclones a 1-0 lead.
1B Trace Willhoite followed with another blast, crushing an 0-1 pitch 400 feet to left-center field for his first homer of the year. The Georgetown, Ky. native’s long ball — with an estimated 15-20 friends and family members in attendance — extended Brooklyn’s lead to 2-0.
Bowling Green (19-11) answered in the third, snapping Austin’s 17.2-inning scoreless streak. 2B Émilien Pitre singled, stole second, and scored on a double to left by DH Tony Santa Maria to cut the deficit to 2-1.
Brooklyn snatched that run back in the fourth. 3B Colin Houck hammered the second pitch of the inning over the right-center field fence for a solo shot. The 21-year-old’s second home run of the season — and in as many days — put the Cyclones back up two, 3-1.
After the Hot Rods cut the deficit back to one in their half of the fourth on an RF Ángel Mateo double, the ‘Clones started to pull away in the sixth.
SS Antonio Jimenez started a two-out rally with a bloop single into shallow right before CF Yonatan Henríquez walked. With both runners in motion, Voit ripped a double off the right-field wall, scoring both and stretching the Cyclones’ lead to 5-2.
Voit would deliver again in the eighth. RF Yohairo Cuevas smashed a double off the right-field wall before taking third on a groundout. After Henríquez walked and stole second, Voit smacked a two-run single back up the middle to make it a 7-2 game.
Louis earned his first win of the season out of the bullpen, allowing just one baserunner over 1.2 hitless innings while striking out two.
RHP Anderson Brito (2-2) took the loss for Bowling Green after allowing three runs on five hits over 4.2 innings. All three runs came via home runs. The right-hander walked three and matched a season high with 10 strikeouts.
Entering Friday, Brito had surrendered only one home run in 68.0 career High-A innings before allowing three in 4.2 frames against Brooklyn.
The Cyclones will try to continue their winning ways in Saturday’s doubleheader. RHP Noah Hall (0-3, 5.19) is expected to get the ball for Brooklyn in Game 1, while the starter for Game 2 is still to be determined. Bowling Green is expected to counter with LHP Garrett Gainey (2-1, 4.63) in the opener and the Tampa Bay Rays’ No. 15 prospect per MLB Pipeline, RHP Trevor Harrison (0-0, 4.76) in the nightcap. The first of the twinbill is scheduled for 5:05 p.m. ET.