WILSON, N.C. - The Wilson Warbirds were patient in the first inning, drawing six free passes on their way to a series-clinching 7-4 victory over Hill City on Sunday afternoon at Wilson Ballpark.
After falling behind 2-0 early thanks to a Tyler Howard two-run home run, Wilson (19-20) had an immediate answer to Hill City’s (20-19) early offense. The Warbirds loaded the bases with Handelfry Encarnacion being hit by a pitch, Brady Ebel singling through the right side, and Juan Ortuno drawing a walk. Four of the next five Warbirds drew an RBI walk, including Pedro Ibarguen, Filippo Di Turi, Luis Lameda, and Ryan Mills. The walk parade handed Wilson a 4-2 lead after an inning of play.
Hill City did not go quietly, as the Howlers brought the game to within a run in the third. Robert Arias led off with a double against Carlos Carra and advanced to third on a flyout to right field. Tyler Howard then grounded out to shortstop Juan Ortuño to plate Arias, making it a 4-3 ballgame.
As they did all series, the Warbirds responded. With two outs and Tyler Rodriguez on second, Rylan Mills blasted his first home run as a Warbird to provide a cushion for Wilson and double up the Howlers at 6-3.
Peyton Niksch (W, 2-1) entered the game with two outs in the fifth and guided Wilson to the home half of the seventh, where more offense was waiting.
Encarnacion legged out a double to right field to lead off the bottom of the seventh. Ebel liked what he saw from Encarnacion and smacked a double of his own to center field, scoring Encarnacion and stretching the Wilson lead to 7-3.
Hill City clawed a run back in the eighth off of Anfernny Reyes, thanks to a Johan Rodriguez RBI single, bringing Hill City to within three runs at 7-4. Reyes trotted back out for the ninth and sat the Howlers down in order to preserve the 7-4 win and clinch the second Wilson series victory of the year.
Hill City starter Chase Mobley (L, 0-4) took the loss, recording just one out and allowing four runs to score.
After an off day on Monday, Wilson will return home on Tuesday night against the Delmarva Shorebirds. First pitch for the series opener is slated for 7:05 p.m. Tickets are still available at WilsonWarbirds.com.