Rockers pound record seven homers in win
Aug. 22—GASTONIA — The High Point Rockers set a club single-game record by hitting seven home runs in Sunday's 13-4 win over Gastonia at Caromont Health Park.
High Point now stands at 57-51 on the season and is a half-game ahead of Kentucky in the wild card race. Lancaster is 1.5 games behind the Rockers in the wild-card battle but holds first place in North Division second-half standings by three games over first-half winner Southern Maryland. Lancaster automatically qualifies for the post-season if it wins the second-half pennant.
The Rockers play six games at home this week — three against Lexington beginning Tuesday and three against Gastonia beginning Friday.
Quincy Latimore blasted two homers on Sunday to become High Point's career leader in home runs with 44, eclipsing Stephen Cardullo's 42. Jerry Downs also hit two and tied Cardullo. Zander Wiel, Michael Russell and Michael Martinez hit on each.
Latimore hit a 3-run homer in the first and a solo homer in the fourth. Russell, Downs and Wiel hit solo shots in the fifth, tying a club record for most homers in an inning and putting the Rockers up 8-0. Martinez hit a solo shot in the sixth, making it 9-3. Downs' homer in the eighth completed the scoring.
Giovanny Alfonzo hit a RBI single in the second, and the Rockers scored two in the seventh on Roldani Baldwin's RBI single and a balk.
All of Gastonia's runs were courtesy of homers — a three-run shot from Jack Reinheimer in the fifth and Zach Jarrett's solo drive in the sixth,
Liam O'Sullivan improved to 3-4 on the year by throwing 5.2 innings and allowing six hits and four runs while walking two and striking out two. Gastonia starter Ian McKinney (L, 5-3) allowed seven hits and eight runs in his seven innings while striking out eight.
