Santa Maria’s Walk-Off Lifts Bowling Green to 7-6 Win

Greenville’s ninth-inning tying homer fell short and the loss narrows the Drive’s path to the postseason with three regular-season games remaining.

Overview

In the latest game at Bowling Green Ballpark, Tony Santa Maria hit a walk-off solo home run to give Bowling Green a 7-6 victory over Greenville.
Greenville had briefly tied the game when Nazzan Zanetello crushed a ninth-inning two-run homer to pull the Drive even at 6-6.
Reports from a local outlet say Santa Maria finished 4-for-5 with four extra-base hits, a performance the Bowling Green coverage notes as a rare four-extra-base game for the franchise.
Bowling Green starter Trevor Harrison struck out nine batters over 5.1 innings and the Hot Rods capitalized on a Greenville bullpen error in the eighth to take a late lead.
The loss significantly tightens Greenville’s situation in the South Division race by leaving the Drive roughly 2.5 games behind Winston-Salem with three regular-season games left, meaning Greenville must win out and rely on unfavorable results for Winston-Salem to reach the playoffs.