Tarboro Vikings head coach, Pat Miller, wasn’t pleased at the outcome of the Tarboro Vikings first home game of the season against the Nash Central Bulldogs Tuesday and he put the majority of the blame on one person - himself.
With two outs, two men on base, and the Vikings leading 3-2 in the sixth inning, Miller kept his starting pitcher, Speirs Miller, in the game after going to the mound to replace him against the Bulldogs’ slugger T.J. Taylor. Taylor had rocked Miller for a one-run home run in the third inning.
Taylor burnt Miller again by nailing a rocket that hit the centerfield wall. Vikings’ centerfielder Markell Pettaway appeared to have a play on the ball, however after backing all the way back to the warning track, he hit the wall after touching the ball with his glove.
The play earned Taylor a triple and Tyler Mizzle and Jalen Hendrick scored the tying and winning runs.
“This one is on me,” Miller said. “I went out their to take him out and I let the kids talk me into leaving him in. I should have taken him out. I‘m not saying that we would have won if I had put William (Ruffin) in. William could have did the same thing. But I wish I had given him an opportunity.”
After the play the Vikings’ coach replaced Spiers Miller with William Ruffin. Ruffin struck out the next batter, Dillion Moore, to end the inning. Ruffin gave up one hit in the seventh inning. Miller gave up six hits and was tagged the losing pitcher.
Coach Miller was hoping for his team to rebound from what he called a “poor showing” over the weekend against First Flight. In their annual two-game series at First Flight the Vikings were defeated 3-0 and 13-4.
It appeared that the Vikings would appease their coach Tuesday night. In the first inning Cameron Webb hit a two-run double that scored Scott Norville and Tyler Wooten.
Taylor’s homer and Mizzle walk home in the third inning tied the game at 2-2.
In the fifth inning Daniel Godwyn sacrifice hit brought Norville home and gave the Vikings a short lived 3-2 lead.
“The kids played their hearts out tonight,” Miller said. “We are still struggling at the plate. We can do better than that. We will get better.”
Trellis Ashley went the distance for the Bulldogs. Ashley gave up seven hits and struckout five batters including two in the seventh inning.
