Eastside Holds Off Westside in 8-7 Thriller at UWM Field
UTICA, Mich. – The Eastside Diamond Hoppers (14-3) built an early lead and survived a furious Westside Woolly Mammoths (24-20) comeback Thursday night, earning an 8-7 victory at UWM Field in a game that featured five home runs and 21 combined hits.
Eastside wasted no time getting on the board, as Eli Watson led off the game with a solo home run to give his team an immediate 1-0 advantage. The offense continued to roll in the second inning when Kevon Jackson and Bailey Martin each launched solo home runs, helping the Hoppers extend its lead to 3-1. Eastside then broke the game open with three more runs in the third to take a commanding 6-1 advantage.
Jackson provided another big swing in the fifth, belting his second home run of the night and seventh of the season. He finished 2-for-3 with three runs scored, two home runs and two RBI. Watson also had a big night at the plate, going 3-for-5 with a home run, two RBI and a run scored, while Martin went 2-for-3 with a homer, two RBI and two runs scored.
The Mammoths refused to go quietly. Trailing 8-1 entering the bottom of the fifth, the offense erupted for three runs behind three-run homer from Dante Morton, cutting the deficit to 8-4. The Mammoths struck for three more in the sixth, with Matt McGann delivering an RBI double as the lead shrank to just one run at 8-7. Morton finished with two hits and drove in a game-high four runs, while McGann and Otero each collected two hits.
With the game suddenly up for grabs, the Hopper’s bullpen slammed the door. Jude Baxt worked a scoreless seventh before Deion Walker retired the Mammoths in order in the eighth, striking out two to earn the save. Dante Zamudio picked up the win after allowing just one run on three hits over four innings. Conor Gausselin took the loss for Westside after allowing eight runs on nine hits over 4.2 innings.
Eastside finished the night with eight runs on 12 hits and four home runs, while Westside totaled seven runs on nine hits. Neither team committed an error in the tightly contested matchup.