Rockers Sweep Revolution

YORK, Pa. – The High Point Rockers swept a doubleheader from the York Revolution on Sunday afternoon at Peoples Bank Park. The Rockers took the first game 5-1 and then posted an 8-7 win in eight innings in the night cap.

The doubleheader was necessitated due to rainouts on Friday and Saturday in York. The Rockers conclude the three-game series with the Revolution with an 11 a.m. game on Monday morning.

In the opening game, High Point starter Justin Nicolino carried a no-hitter into the sixth while High Point’s bats backed him up with five runs. Nicolino (3-0) did not allow a hit until there was one out in the sixth. Yefri Perez singled to left and scored on a single by Melky Mesa.

Nicolino went six innings and allowed just three hits, walked two and struck out four while allowing just one run. Ryan Dull pitched a three-up, three-down seventh with a pair of strikeouts to close out the Game One victory.

The Rockers tallied in the first inning when Ben Aklinski lined a single to center and moved to second on a single by Jerry Downs. Quincy Latimore then singled to right to drive home Aklinski.

High Point took a 2-0 lead in the second when Johnny Field led off the frame with a double and then scored on a single by Chris Proctor.

The Rockers broke the game open when Tyler Ladendorf doubled with the bases loaded in the top of the seventh, driving home all three runners to give the Rockers a 5-1 lead.

In the  nightcap, York took an early 2-0 lead in the second off High Point starter Austin Glorius. A walk to Nellie Rodriguez led to a Carlos Franco two-run homer.

The Rockers scored five times in the third inning. Mike Gulino led off with a single and Jay Gonzalez drew a walk from Revolution starter Duke von Schamann. Zander Wiel plated two runs with a double to center. Quincy Latimore’s single scored Wiel and Michael Russell doubled to left to score Latimore and Ladendorf who had reached on a single.

York cut into High Point’s 5-2 lead with a single run in the bottom of the third when J.C. Encarnacion scored on an infield ground out by Carlos Franco.

The Rockers added a run in the top of the seventh when pinch-hitter Liam Scaffariello drew a walk and stole second. He moved to third on a ground out by Russell and then scored on a single by Michael Martinez to give the Rockers a 6-3 lead.

But York would not go quietly into the night. Elmer Reyes led off the bottom of the seventh with a base hit off Rockers’ closer Chasen Bradford. After striking out the next two hitters, York’s Troy Stokes, Jr. reached on a fielding error and then Melky Mesa hit his first homer of the year over the wall in left to knot the game at 6-6.

In the top of the eighth, with Johnny Field starting the inning at second, Aklinski homered over the wall in left to give the Rockers an 8-6 lead.  High Point reliever Tanner Duncan yielded a single run in the bottom of the eighth and secured his first save of the year as the Rockers finished on top 8-7.

The Rockers will complete the three-game series on Monday with a seven inning game starting at 11 a.m. at Peoples Bank Park. High Point will return home for a three-game set with the Charleston Dirty Birds starting on Tuesday, May 10 with the first pitch at 6:35 p.m.