GASTONIA, N.C. – For the second straight night, the High Point Rockers and Gastonia Baseball Club battled to a tie through nine innings before GBC won the game in the bottom of the 10th. Wednesday night it was a bloop single to right that scored Eric Da La Rosa to give Gastonia a 3-2 win at Gastonia’s CaroMont Health Park.
The win puts Gastonia (34-15) three games in front of the Rockers (31-18) in the race for the South Division first half pennant.
Stowers’ hit was just the ninth of the game as Gastonia managed six hits while the Rockers were held to just three.
Stowers staked Gastonia to a 1-0 lead with a solo homer in the fourth off High Point starter Ben Braymer.
Trailing 1-0 in the sixth, High Point catcher Brian Parreira coaxed a walk from Gastonia starter Nick Wells. Rockers second baseman D.J. Burt then homered to left on the 10th pitch of the at-bat, giving the Rockers a 2-1 advantage.
In the bottom of the sixth, Braymer allowed a one out double to Jake Gatewood who came around to score on a single by Gastonia catcher Patrick Mazeika to knot the game at 2-2.
The game remained knotted at 2-2 through the ninth inning and into extra innings. The Rockers were unable to score in the top of the 10th and Ryan Meisinger (L, 1-1) came on to face Gastonia in the bottom of the 10th. After a sac bunt by Jake Hoover moved Eric De La Rosa to third, Meisinger was able to strikeout Jack Reinheimer for the second out of the inning but Stowers blooped a single to right that scored De La Rosa and gave Gastonia a second consecutive extra inning walk-off win. Gastonia’s Cory Thompson (W, 2-0) pitched a shutout 10th inning to earn the win.
Braymer went five innings and allowed just two hits while walking three and striking out five.
Ben Aklinski, Colin Moran and Burt accounted for High Point’s three hits. Stowers led Gastonia with two hits and two RBI.
Game three of the series is slated for a 7:00 p.m. first pitch on Thursday at CaroMont Health Park in Gastonia.
