Palmese, Melendez the heroes in ETSU’s comeback win in walk-off fashion Saturday

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (WCYB) — Following a pair of run-rule wins where ETSU baseball scored a combined 26 runs on Friday, it would take everything from the Bucs to produce runs on Saturday – but they were able to do it in clutch time late.

Down to their final six out on Saturday, Jamie Palmese smashed a game-tying three-run home run over the left field wall – breaking a 3-0 shutout deficit in the eighth inning.

After going to extra innings and allowing a run in the top of the 11th, the Bucs again had to play from behind – and this time, it was Axel Melendez coming up big. After a Luis Montesano double put runners on second and third, Melendez delivered a walk-off base hit to walk away with a 5-4 win, and series sweep over Longwood.

In a game where the bats were quiet until the late heroics of Palmese in the eighth inning, it was day where Michael Harpster once again ruled the mound. The preseason Co-SoCon Pitcher of the Year tossed four innings, allowing just one earned run and striking out six.

But it was his counterpart, Guillermo Garcia, who kept the Bucs in check until he was pulled in the eighth.

Melendez and Cody Miller led the Bucs offense with two hits a piece. Landon Crumbley was the big winner on the mound out of the bullpen for ETSU – tossing 3.1 innings with no earned run given up to keep the Bucs in it. Andrew Ronne picked up the win by closing the door in the 11th before the walk-off win.

With the win, the Bucs record their fourth series sweep of the season at home and improve to 15-4 before heading to Knoxville to take on defending champions Tennessee on Tuesday. Then the Bucs return home for the SoCon-opening series against Samford – starting on Friday afternoon.