By: Sammy Johnson

The Pilots lost to the Morehead City Marlins by a score of 9-2 in tonight’s game. The Pilots shot themselves in the foot, with five of the nine runs scored by the Marlins being unearned.

The Marlins opened scoring in the first inning after it was extended by a Pilots error. A single by short-stop Braylin Marine put the Marlins up 2-0.

A flurry of singles by the Pilots in the second inning kept the Pilots in the game. Henry Garcia (Howard) drove in Zac Morris (VMI) to cut the lead to 2-1.

However, the game fell apart in the fourth inning. Marlins’ first baseman Dan Tauken hit a 2-run home run with one out to extend the lead to 4-1. After that, the Pilots gave up runs in every way possible. There were two RBI singles, an error on a ground ball that lead to two runs, and a passed ball scored one more. At the end of this nightmare inning, the score was 9-1.

On the first pitch in the top of the fifth, Pilots catcher Cole Stanford (Lenoir-Rhyne) hit a solo home run to make the score 9-2.

Dalton Barham (Norfolk State) put together an impressive performance out of the bullpen, going 3.2 innings, giving up zero earned runs, and striking out seven.

The Pilots have now dropped their first four games this season, and will again look to bounce back this Thursday, June 8th.