River Rats Fall to Leesburg at Pat Thomas

LEESBURG, Fla. - The Sanford River Rats fell to the Leesburg Lightning 11-5 on Friday night as Leesburg used a pair of big offensive innings to pull away.

The Lightning wasted little time getting on the board, scoring three runs in the first inning. KT Thompson crossed the plate on a wild pitch before Jack Waddingham delivered a two-run single to right field, giving Leesburg an early 3-0 lead.

Sanford answered in the second inning when Michael Dobkowski scored on a wild pitch, cutting the deficit to 3-1. However, Leesburg responded immediately in the bottom half as Ledger Pleasant drove in Gabe Campos with an RBI single to make it 4-1.

The River Rats continued to battle back in the third. Drew Pynes came through with a two-run single to center field, scoring Jordan Marlo and John Dobkowski and trimming the Lightning lead to 4-3.

Leesburg regained momentum in the middle innings. An unearned run scored in the fourth before the Lightning broke the game open with a four-run fifth inning. Marcello Cortale highlighted the rally with a two-run double, while Turner Gross and Pleasant each added RBIs as the lead grew to 9-3.

Sanford attempted another comeback in the sixth inning. Enzo Ercole drove in a run with a groundout before John Dobkowski reached on an error that allowed another run to score, bringing the River Rats within 9-5.

The Lightning added insurance runs in the seventh inning on an RBI groundout by Campos and another wild pitch, extending the lead to 11-5.

Pynes led the Sanford offense with two RBIs, while John Dobkowski and Michael Dobkowski each scored a run. Ercole also drove in a run as the River Rats generated five runs but were unable to overcome Leesburg's offensive outburst.

The final game of the series is scheduled for Saturday at 7 p.m. in Leesburg.

Alejandro Landers (Elon University)