Kinston Post 43 manager Ronnie Battle got everything he wanted and more in the season opener.
The following night was a different story.
Jacksonville Post 265 rapped out a season-best 19 hits and Corey Case went 4-for-6 with a three-run home run in its 16-6 mercy-rule win over visiting Post 43 on Thursday.
The game, which ended with two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning, came 24 hours after Kinston (1-1) opened its season by showcasing nearly every facet of the game, from pitching to defense to base running to hitting.
Not so much in this one.
“It just seemed like we couldn’t do nothing right after the first three, four innings,” Battle told the Jacksonville Daily News. “It was a right close, pretty decent ballgame and then all of sudden a couple things didn’t go our way. I’m going to leave that right there so the MLB don’t fine me.”
Dylan Puchalski went 2-for-4 and drove in two runs, including a solo home run to lead off the second that made it 2-1 — Kinston’s last lead of the night.
Jacksonville scored three runs in the third, three more in the fifth and nine more in the seventh and eighth innings combined.
Kinston also committed four errors.
Matt Hinson was saddled with the loss. He gave up seven runs, five earned, on 12 hits, walked one, struck out one and hit one in 4 2/3 innings. Dixon product J.P Padgett scattered four hits across seven innings in the win. He struck out eight.
Good thing for Kinston, it hosts Post 265 (4-2) at 7 tonight at Viking Field.
“It’s good to go ahead and get this over with hopefully,” Battle said. “The last couple innings there we gained a little momentum. If we can use that going into tomorrow, maybe we’ll give them a much better game than what we did tonight.”