BG Hot Rods take series from Rome with 5-3 Win on Sunday

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Hill Alexander had two hits and two RBIs in the Bowling Green Hot Rods (39-21) 5-3 win over the Rome Braves (32-28) to close out an eight-game series at State Mutual Stadium in Rome, Georgia on Sunday. The Hot Rods are out of action on Monday for a league-wide off day.

Bowling Green took an early lead against Braves starter Alan Rangel by plating a run in the second inning with some two-out hitting. Evan Edwards singled to center and Connor Hollis grounded into a fielder’s choice. He moved to second when Jacson McGowan walked and Hollis scored on Alexander’s line-drive single to left, giving the Hot Rods a 1-0 edge.

The Hot Rods struck again against Rangel in the fourth. Hollis led off with a double to left and went to third on McGowan’s groundout to second. Alexander lifted a sacrifice fly to left, allowing Hollis to score while making it a 2-0 Hot Rods lead.

Jesse Franklin V hit a leadoff homer in the fifth, but BG starter Jacob Lopez worked through two hits in the inning to keep the Hot Rods in front, 2-1. Rome tied the game in the eighth, but the Hot Rods rallied with two outs in the ninth to get the lead back. Alexander singled to center and Pedro Martinez walked with two outs. Curtis Mead singled to left, plating Alexander to give Bowling Green a 3-2 edge.

With the Braves bullpen taxed from an extra-inning game and two doubleheaders, infielder Brett Langhorne took the mound and walked in two more runs before getting the final out of the inning. Rome scored in the ninth and brought the winning run to the plate, but the Hot Rods went on to win 5-3 in the series finale.

Lopez allowed one run on three hits over 5.0 innings with five strikeouts in a no-decision. Tanner Dodson earned his fifth hold and pitched a scoreless 2.0 innings, allowing two hits with four strikeouts. Miller Hogan (2-2) earned the win with a blown save, going 2.0 innings while allowing two runs on six hits with two strikeouts.