Joes' Win Streak Ends in 4-3 Loss to Xenia
By Luke West Poley
The Joes’ luck finally came to an end on Thursday in a 4-3 loss versus the Xenia Scouts. Despite the offense producing late, the bats came up short, with 8 of the 9 innings scoreless for the Joes.
Dawson Hall made his second start for the Joes, pitching 5 innings, giving up 2 runs off 6 hits. For the Scouts, baserunners were produced all over the lineup, with the first 2 runs coming across in the top of the 5th. Hits from Nate Self and Kyle Wu would both pay off for the Scouts to give Xenia a 2-0 lead heading into the 6th.
The Joes would not strike until the 7th, with the 6 through 8 hitters producing runs. Cal Brazier would drive in 2 of the 3 runs for the Joes with a double, eventually coming home to score the Joes 3rd run on an RBI single from Grant Miller.
The Scouts would respond, however, in the next inning as 2 more runs would score to allow Xenia to retake the lead. A pair of walks followed by a wild pitch advanced 2 runners into scoring position, eventually allowing Tommy Rover to give the Scouts their 2nd lead of the game with a single that scored both runs.
Chase Hopewell would come in to shut the Scouts down the rest of the way, striking out 5 and giving up 0 runs in 2 innings of work. Despite the effort, however, the Joes could not build upon the momentum as only 1 Joe would reach base in the final 2 innings with no runs coming in to score. The final result would be a 4-3 Scouts victory.
The winning pitcher was Ross Smith for Xenia, while Noah Tincher would record the loss for the Joes. Xenia improves to 4-7 on the season while Hamilton falls to 9-5. The 7 game win streak for the Joes would come to an end. Despite the loss, the Joes still sit atop the GLSCL South at the end of the night, with a one game lead over Licking County. Hamilton is back in action tomorrow, as the Southern Ohio Copperheads will come to town. First pitch is set for 7:05 pm.
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