The Evansville Otters saw their eight-game winning streak snapped Wednesday, falling 5-4 in extra-innings to the Joliet Slammers.
The loss snapped an eight-game winning streak for the Otters, their longest winning run since 2012.
The Otters got their scoring started in the top of the fourth inning Wednesday, when J.R. Davis hit a leadoff double and was eventually driven in on an Elijah MacNamee sac fly to right fielder Kyle Jacobson, who bounced against the right field wall to keep MacNamee off base.
Evansville added to their lead when John Schultz clubbed a home run out to right field to lead off the top of the fifth. That put the Otters up 2-0.
Otters starter Austin Gossmann was phenomenal in his second start, picking up a quality start by twirling six scoreless innings of three-hit ball, while striking out five.
The Otters extended Gossmann’s lead in the top of the seventh, when J.R. Davis singled home Miles Gordon from third for his 20th RBI of the season. The Otters then led 3-0.
Samson Abernathy replaced Gossmann in the bottom half of the seventh, striking out the side while working around a two-out error.
Evansville added another tally in the top of the eighth when Bryce Denton scored from third on a wild pitch, pushing their lead to 4-0.
Disaster struck in the eighth inning however, when the Slammers rallied to score four runs. Abraham Almonte took the ball from Abernathy with runners at first and second and one out in the bottom of the eighth, striking out the first batter he faced.
Then, with two outs, Slammers catcher Jarret Rindfleisch put Joliet on the board with a run-scoring single. Almonte would then walk the bases loaded before being lifted in favor of Taylor Wright.
Wright walked in the second Slammers run by missing with ball four to Kyle Jacobson with a full count. Lane Baremore would follow up the bases loaded walk with a two-run, two-out, game-tying single, as Joliet pulled even with Evansville 4-4.
After a scoreless top of the ninth, Wright returned to get the first two outs in the bottom half of the inning. He was then relieved by Justin Lewis, making his first appearance since being reinstated from the injured list. With the winning run at first and two out, Lewis managed to strike out the only batter he faced.
In the top of the tenth, with the international tie-breaker rule in play, the Otters would put runners at the corners with nobody out after Bryce Denton reached on a bunt hit to lead off the inning.
Slammers reliever Trevor Charpie then buckled down to strike out the next three Otters he faced, keeping the game tied going into the bottom of the tenth.
Evansville’s closer Logan Sawyer came on in the tenth to try and send a tie game into a home run derby finish. After a wild pitch, the bequeathed runner advanced to third with no one out.
Sawyer then managed to strike out Jarrett Rindfleisch, before getting Sean Green to pop out to second.
An out away from the derby finish, Sawyer induced a slow roller to third from Kyle Jacobson, but a throw wide of the bag would allow Jacobson to reach first safely and score the winning run on a throwing error.
The Slammers would hand the Otters their second walk-off loss of the season with a 5-4 final.
Sawyer thus took the tough-luck loss, while Trevor Charpie earned the win.
The Otters will look to take the rubber match of the series Thursday night, with a 7.05 p.m. first pitch. Fans can catch an audio broadcast on the Evansville Otters YouTube page with a 6:50 p.m. pregame show
