BURLINGTON, N.C. — In a preview of the Appalachian League championship game, Kingsport fell victim to a seven- run fourth inning.
Burlington used the big frame as part of a 9-4 win over the Axmen in Wednesday night’s baseball game.
Burlington, the East Division champion that will play host to Kingsport in Tuesday’s title game, improved to 37-17. West Division champion Kingsport slipped to 35-17.
THE DECISIVE FOURTH
Trailing 3-2, the Sock Puppets got an RBI single from DeAngelo Giles to even the score.
Peyton Shubert followed with a triple, plating two runs to pushing Burlington ahead 5-3.
A single by Tianzhou Zhu brought home another run, and Brogan Napier’s two-run double gave the Sock Puppets an 8-3 advantage.
An RBI infield single off the bat of Ethan Lizama concluded the big frame.
KINGSPORT’S FIRST PUSH
Entering the inning with a 2-1 deficit, the Axmen got even thanks to a wild pitch.
Kyle Booker came through with an RBI single to give Kingsport a 3-2 lead.
THE LEADERS
Zhu, Ryan McCrystal, Napier and Lizama each collected two hits to lead the Sock Puppets’ attack.
Napier, Lizama and Shubert each drove in a pair of runs.
For Kingsport, Booker had two hits and two RBIs while Henry Hunter added a pair of hits.
Anthony Imhoff was brilliant in relief on the mound, striking out 10 batters in 4 1/3 scoreless innings.
Try the Kingsport Times News app today. Download here from Google Play and the App Store.
