6Braves win second straight 4-3 as Goede homer spoils Patriots comeback
The Gainesville Braves made it two in a row with a 4-3 win over the Marietta Patriots Wednesday night at Ivey-Watson Field. The Braves and Pats went toe-to-toe, locked in a good-old-fashioned pitchers’ duel between the Braves Halton Hardy and the Patriots Grant Guitnher. Both arms made quick work of their opposing lineups through the first four innings, with each team allowing just one baserunner each until the decisive fifth inning. Hardy allowed just one
hit while his counterpart Guitnher carrying a no-hitter into the fifth. The Patriots, trying to snap an 0-8 start to the season jumped out to a brief 2-0 lead in the visitor’s half of the fifth with a single by Preston Welchel and a double by Cameron Foster. With runners on second and third and two outs Primin Brechbuhl found the seam beneath a diving
Jarrett Burney to tally his first hit of the 2021 season, ending an 0-for-16 string with two-RBI single.
The Braves though, responded with three of their own in the bottom of the fifth, with a base hit by Danny Lynch in his first at-bat of the season and a walk to Hudson Sapp. Lynch would score on a ground out by Will Mapes and Sapp would trot home on a sacrifice fly by Charlie Erickson. The Braves nine weren’t finished though as Caleb Carter laced a two-out single to right to restart the rally. Following a steal of second, Carter would score on the error to short by Ryland Goede.
Goede’s heroics were just starting as in the bottom of the eighth he launched a big fly to right to give Gainesville a much-needed insurance run with his first homer of the season. That lead would hold as Marietta stranded the tying run on first after cutting the lead to one with a run in the top of the ninth.
The Braves (2-6) will be tested with a home-and-home series with Brookhaven, returning home Saturday for the second game of the series.
Hardy picked up the win with six innings of stellar work scattering five hits while striking out eight. Tucker Daniel picked up the save firing two innings of hitless relief. Guitnher absorbed the loss allowing just two earned runs over five innings.