The Franklin Reporter & Advocate Eight Villages, One Community
High Point, North Carolina – The High Point Rockers (41-29) hit a pair of solo home runs in the bottom of the ninth Saturday night to defeat the Somerset Patriots (41-28) at BB&T Point.
The Rockers opened the scoring on a Stephen Cardullo (10) solo home run that led off the bottom of the first inning. After that point, the game became a pitchers’ duel. 
Joe Van Meter got the start for High Point, and was perfect through his first five innings. It was not until Michael Crouse led off the sixth with a double that Somerset saw a base runner.
Crouse would steal third later in the inning before Rey Navarro brought him home with an RBI groundout, tying the game at 1-1. Somerset took the lead the next inning on a two-out RBI triple to right-center field from Michael Ohlman.
Meanwhile, Thomas Dorminy held the Rockers off the scoreboard into the seventh inning. The southpaw went a season-high seven and one-third innings, scattering five hits with no walks and nine strikeouts. Dorminy at one point retired 12 batters in a row.
Somerset held it’s 2-1 lead into the ninth inning, but Mike Antonini (L, 1-3) allowed back-to-back two-out solo home runs to Tyler Ladendorf (10) and Quincy Latimore (10) to give High Point the win.
Asher Tolliver (W, 6-0) tossed a scoreless inning of relief to receive the win.
With the loss, the Long Island Ducks have officially won the First Half Liberty Division Championship.
The Patriots and Rockers conclude their three-game series Saturday evening. First pitch at BB&T Point is set for 2:00 p.m.
The 2019 Somerset Patriots Season presented by Ford will continue on the road until Friday, July 12th when the team returns to TD Bank Ballpark for a 7:05 pm game against the New Britain Bees. For tickets, stop by the box office located at TD Bank Ballpark, call (908) 252-0700, or visit www.somersetpatriots.com.
