As well as the Hickory Crawdads have played in clinching the first-half North Division championship of the South Atlantic League, they didn't show it in the eighth inning Friday night.
The Crawdads sprung a fielding leak in the bottom of that inning, allowing the West Virginia Power to steal a 6-5 victory at Appalachian Power Park.
The game was delayed about 90 minutes at the start, as crews anticipated oncoming rain. As it turned out, the rain was nothing more than a drizzle, and the game went off without a hitch.
Hickory's defense had two hitches in the critical eighth. It started with one out, when Carlos Arroyo dropped a routine fly ball. That allowed Taylor Gushue to take second standing up.
Elvis Escobar tied the game at 5 with a single. Cole Tucker singled and Jordan Luplow walked to load the bases against loser John Fasola (1-1).
Connor Joe's grounder to the mound proved to be the difference. Fasola fielded the ball cleanly, but pulled catcher Ricardo Valencia off the plate with the throw. Technically, that wasn't an error - Valencia retired Joe at first, so that goes as a 1-2-3 putout and gives Joe the game-winning RBI.
Jake Burnette (2-3) picked up the win despite giving up back-to-back home runs in the eighth. Nick Neumann recorded his 10th save.
The Power started the scoring early, with Cole Tucker leading off the first with a double, advancing to third on a sacrifice bunt and scoring on a wild pitch.
The Crawdads evened it up in the top of the second when Jairo Beras and Rock Shoulders singled and Beras scored on a double play.
Hickory took the lead in the top of the fourth when Luke Tendler, entering the game in a 4-for-31 slump, doubled. Beras smacked a double just past diving left fielder Escobar, scoring Tendler.
The Power scored twice in the fifth off Hickory's first reliever, Chris Dula. One run came on a Luplow single up the middle; the go-ahead run came on back-to-back-to-back walks.
In the sixth, the Crawdads drew even at 3 without a hit. Power reliever Jake Burnette had his troubles, walking three and loading the bases. Isiah Kiner-Falefa delivered the RBI with a sacrifice fly.
Michael Suchy put the Power ahead 4-3 in the bottom of the seventh, hitting a rocket off the left-field scoreboard. But Beras and Shoulders gave the Crawdads the lead with back-to-back homers.
The three-game series, which finishes the first half, continues at 7 p.m. today with Power left-hander Stephen Tarpley facing Hickory lefty Yohander Mendez. The series concludes at 2 p.m. Sunday.
Reach Doug Smock at 304-348-4282, dougsmock@wvgazette.com or follow him on Twitter @dougsmock.