By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – There was no shortage of excitement in Game 3 of the Purple & Gold Series Friday afternoon, as the Purple Team, on the brink of elimination, mounted a crucial comeback to keep the series alive and force a Game 4 Tuesday afternoon.
Trailing 4-2 to the Gold Team heading into the fifth inning, the Purple squad took advantage of a couple of miscues by the defense to tie the contest before the frame ended. With a runner on first, Matt Jones ripped a single to left field, plating the run to cut the advantage in half.
Two batters later, Connor Goodspeed notched his 10th RBI of the series, smashing a sacrifice fly to center field, driving in Jones and knotting the contest at four runs apiece.
Just one frame later, the comeback was complete. Sophomore Trevor Putzig led off the frame with a double to right center field. After stealing third base, and a quick first out to the inning, Kevin Strohschein delivered the crushing blow to the hopes of a Gold Team sweep, singling in Putzig for the 5-4 lead.
The winning pitcher on the day, Josh Pankratz, tossed two very solid innings in relief, retiring six of the seven batters he faced. He delivered with two strikeouts, including the final batter of the contest to cut the Gold Team lead in the series to 2-1.
Game 4 will commence at a time to be determined on Tuesday afternoon with the Gold Team looking to rebound and take the series.
Photo by Jim Dillon