Despite an eventful ninth, the Hill City Howlers fell 8-7 to the Wilson Warbirds on Wednesday evening.
Hill City had the tying run in scoring position and the winning run aboard with one out in the ninth but could not get over the hump. For the second straight night, the Howlers pitching staff walked more Warbirds than they struck out.
Hill City scored first for the second straight ballgame, putting a run on the board in the second inning. After Anthony Martinez opened the inning with a double, he found his way to third on a wild pitch. Two batters later, Luis De La Cruz brought him home with a sacrifice fly.
In the third, Wilson responded after a two-out error put Handelfry Encarnacion aboard. Brady Ebel answered with a two-run home run that tucked itself next to the scoreboard in right putting them on top, 2-1.
The Warbirds tacked on a trio in the fourth inning. Rylan Mills drove home a run with an RBI single to extend the lead to two. Then, Luis Lameda found the hole in the infield for a two-run base knock, putting Wilson in front 5-1.
Hill City matched them in the fifth with three of their own. Three straight hits with two outs allowed for RBI doubles from Juneiker Caceres and Cannon Peebles. Jose Pirela followed with a run-scoring single to cut the deficit to 5-4.
Jadyn Fielder drove home a run with a groundout with the bases loaded, pushing the Wilson lead back up to two. Jose Anderson added two in the seventh with a homer down the right field line moved the Warbirds in front 8-4.
The Howlers came alive in the ninth as a wild pitch allowed Tyler Howard to score. Peebles brought home a run on a bloop single to right, cutting the deficit to two. A ground out from Jose Pirela brought home the third. However, despite getting the winning run aboard with one out, Hill City ran out of steam and popped out twice to end the night.
Game three takes place on Thursday evening at 6:30 p.m. at City Stadium as the Howlers and the Warbirds resume their rivalry. Tickets are available at hchowlers.com.