WILSON, N.C. - The Wilson Warbirds could not keep up with the Hickory Cradads in a 10-7 loss which resulted in the team being eliminated from playoff contention on Saturday night at Wilson Ballpark.
Hickory (76-47, 42-17 second half) jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the top of the second inning on a groundout from Curley Martha.
Rylan Mills responded for Wilson (64-59, 28-29 second half) with an opposite field home run to tie the game at one in the bottom of the second.
A frame later, the Crawdads plated three on consecutive hits from Kaden Carpenter, Noah Franklin, and Brandon Crabtree to race out to a 4-1 lead.
The Warbirds had a response in the bottom of the third, scoring three on RBI knocks from Mills and Carsten Sabathia.
Tied at four entering the fourth, Hickory took over using an inside-the-park homer from Kolby Branch and a solo shot from Carpenter to extend the lead to 8-4.
The Warbirds were able to scratch across a couple more runs, but could not complete the comeback, falling 10-7. With the loss and Fayetteville winning, the Woodpeckers clinched the second half North Division title to eliminate Wilson from playoff contention.
Enderson Mercado (L, 5-8) was the losing pitcher for the Warbirds while Will Whelan (W, 2-0) was the winner for the second time this week.
The Warbirds conclude their home schedule Sunday at 1:05 p.m. RHP Hayden Robinson (4-1, 4.91) will throw for the Warbirds against Hickory’s RHP Josh Owens (0-0, 0.00).
Tickets for tomorrow’s contest are available at WilsonWarbirds.com or by calling (919) 269-2287.