FLORENCE - Russellville senior Landon Ezzell extended his streak to 24 consecutive innings without allowing an earned run, but five errors proved costly for the Golden Tigers in a 2-1 loss to Florence on Tuesday at Falcon Field.
Ezzell (4-1) pitched around two errors in the bottom of the first and another in the second, taking a 1-0 lead into the bottom of the fourth. Florence senior Landon Langston, a UNA signee, led off the inning and hit a high pop-up into foul territory on the left side of the infield. Third baseman Houston Kitterman got to it but couldn’t squeeze it, and Langston eventually drew a walk.
After Zane Garrett dropped down a sacrifice bunt, Langston moved to third when Brantley Holden reached on an error. Ethan Horne got down a squeeze bunt, and Langston scored easily to tie the game 1-1.
Russellville (12-6) threatened to go back in front in the top of the fifth. Senior lefthander Evan Taylor, an Arkansas signee, came on in relief for Florence (13-5), and first baseman Jeff Lloyd greeted him with a ringing double to deep right field. The Golden Tigers seemed intent on playing a little small ball of their own, but courtesy runner Omar Tompkins strayed too far from second base on a pitch down and out of the strike zone and got picked off by strong-armed catcher Joseph Kiel, a Lawson State signee.
Noah Gist walked, but Taylor retired Rudy Fernandez and Ezzell on fly balls to right to end the inning.
Florence took the lead for good in the bottom of the fifth. Ezzell got the first two batters on groundballs to second before Kiel singled to center. Zeke Bishop followed with a fly ball to deep left-center that bounced off the glove of Gist for a two-base error, allowing courtesy runner Ben Boggus to score the go-ahead run all the way from first.
Kitterman reached on an infield hit to start the top of the sixth, but Taylor found his groove and struck out the side. Caden Parker relieved Ezzell in the bottom of the inning and pitched around a two-out single by Horne, keeping it a 2-1 game.
Senior right-hander Joseph Snowden, who has signed with Loyola University in Louisiana, came on in relief to start the seventh and got two quick strikeouts before walking Fernandez and hitting Ezzell with a pitch to put the go-ahead run on base. Snowden righted the ship and got Kitterman on a groundball to second to earn the save and nail down Florence’s eighth straight win.
The Golden Tigers scored their only run of the game in the top of the first, loading the bases on an infield hit by Gist, a single by Fernandez and a walk to Ezzell. Florence starter David Rowland, an Itawamba Community College signee, retired the next three batters to avoid major damage, yielding a run when Gist came home on a groundout by Tom Barkley Scott.
Rowland pitched the first two innings, striking out two and allowing two hits. He gave way in the third to Cade Henry, the younger brother of LSU signee Cole Henry and the older brother of freshman Cason Henry, a Miami commit. Cade Henry pitched two scoreless innings, striking out three and giving up one hit.
Taylor came on in the fifth and got the win with two scoreless innings, striking out three and allowing two hits. Florence pitchers combined for 10 strikeouts on the day.
Ezzell held the Falcons to two hits and two runs (both unearned) in five innings, striking out two and walking one. He threw 83 pitches (including 58 strikes) and has still not allowed an earned run yet this season in his five starts. Parker, who struck out one in his one scoreless inning on Tuesday, has also not allowed an earned run this season in 16.2 innings of work.
Gist, Fernandez, Kitterman, Lloyd and Brock Malone each had one hit for Russellville.
The Golden Tigers will return to action at home on Thursday with a game against Bob Jones at 4:30 p.m.
