Despite trailing 3-2 entering the seventh, the Martinsville Mustangs rallied to top the Tri-City Chili Peppers 9-5 on Saturday night at Hooker Field.
Left-hander Jacob Widener (NC State) made his third start of the summer on the mound and allowed three runs on five hits while striking out a season-high eight hitters in 4.2 innings of work.
The Mustangs (7-5, 3-5 CPL) opened the scoring in the third inning on a Will Knight (VMI) RBI double to make it 1-0. After the Chili Peppers grabbed a 3-2 lead, the Mustangs put together a five-run seventh that included an RBI single by shortstop Landon Shaw (Presbyterian) and two-run singles by both Knight and catcher Bo Rusher (Gardner-Webb).
A trio of right-handers in Jake Wolf (UNCG), Patrick Halligan (Pitt) and Bradley Hines (Lindsey Wilson) helped secure the victory out of the bullpen, allowing only a combined five hits the rest of the way.
Martinsville returns home for a Value Monday doubleheader against the Forest City Owls on June 14. First pitch in Game 1 is scheduled for 5:15 p.m.