Otterbots cement win over Johnson City with three-run eighth

Danville’s Jake Guyette struck out six in two innings of relief and the Otterbots scored three runs in the bottom of the eighth for a win over the Johnson City Doughboys in Appalachian League action Saturday night …

DANVILLE, Va. — Danville’s Jake Guyette struck out six in two innings of relief and the Otterbots scored three runs in the bottom of the eighth for a 7–2 win over the Johnson City Doughboys in Appalachian League action Saturday night.

Danville (17–10) held a 4–2 lead going into the eighth. Michael Callan Moss continued his big night with an RBI bases-loaded walk and Cole Johnson (Oklahoma State) kept his bat hot with a single to right field that scored Addison Smith (Oklahoma State) and Kaden Martin (East Tennessee State) for a five-run advantage heading into the ninth.

Johnson City (13–13) did its best to put together a rally of its own in the ninth, loading the bases on a pair of walks and hit by pitch. Kobie Cushing (Lenoir-Rhyne) was up to the challenge, recording a strikeout to seal the win for the Otterbots.

The ‘Bots needed the rally for the win, scoring three runs in the third. With Danville trailing 2–0, Micah Dean (Kansas City) got the Otterbots on the board with his single through the left side that plated Martin and Tanner McCammon (Elon) knotted the score with his RBI ground out to third. A wild pitch brought Johnson home with the go-ahead run.

Danville took a 4–2 lead in the bottom of the sixth on Moss’s RBI single to left.

Despite the final score, it was the Doughboys that got the upper hand, scoring a run in the top of the first on Gunner Boree’s RBI base knock to center. Boree doubled down on Johnson City’s lead in the top of the third with his RBI groundout that made it a 2–0 contest.

Guyette (Kansas State) got the win on the hill, throwing two innings of one-hit, shutout relief. Cushing earned his sixth save of the season, tossing two innings of one-hit, shutout relief while striking out three. Former Tunstall standout Raymond Ladd (Radford University) gave up two and no runs in two frames of relief while Cyle Phelan (UNC-Wilmington) turned in a solid start, giving up three hits and two runs — one earned — and striking out three in three innings thrown.

Altogether, Danville’s pitching staff struck out 12, giving the Otterbots two straight games with double-digit strikeouts.

Moss and Johnson led with two RBI each for Danville while Dean and McCammon drove in a run each. Martin and Moss collected a pair of hits.

Boree led Johnson City with a pair of RBI while Kyler Proctor (Oklahoma State) paced the Doughboys with three hits.

Danville returns to action tomorrow when it wraps the two-game set against Johnson City at 5:30 p.m.