FORT MYERS, Fla. – Kendall George (Houston, Texas) hit a go-ahead single with two outs in the top of the sixth to lift the Stripes past the Stars, 4-3, in the second game of the Stars vs. Stripes series on Wednesday afternoon at Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers, Florida.

With the Stars trailing by a run in the top of the sixth, Stone Russell (Bradenton, Fla.) and Danny Arambula (Redlands, Calif.) both drew walks to put a pair of runners on. After a wild pitch advanced both runners into scoring position, George hit a hard single right back up the middle to plate the tying and winning runs.
 
The game was a back-and-forth battle throughout. The Stars took the first lead of the game in their first turn at bat when Max Clark (Franklin, Ind.) walked and eventually scored on a wild pitch to go up 1-0. Camden Kozeal (Omaha, Neb.) stayed hot at the plate and tied the game at one for the Stripes with an RBI single in the top of the second before the Stars grabbed the lead back on an error in the third. Bryce Rainer’s (Simi Valley, Calif.) RBI single tied it again for the Stripes, but the Stars immediately answered with a two-out, go-ahead single in the bottom of the fifth to set the stage for George’s game-winning hit in the sixth.
 
George went 2-for-2 to account for nearly half of the Stripes’ hits. He also drove in a game-high two runs and scored one of his own. Russell reached base in each of his three plate appearances, walking twice and hitting a triple to help pace the Stripes’ offense. The Stars got five hits from five different players in the defeat. Clark went 1-for-3 with a walk and two runs scored, and Kevin McGonigle (Aidan, Pa.) had a 1-for-4 day with the Stars’ lone run batted in.
 
The Stripes’ Cameron Johnson (Upper Marlboro, Md.) and the Stars’ Christian Rodriguez (Coral Springs, Fla.) were both solid in their starts on the mound. Johnson allowed two runs (one earned) in four innings, permitting just one hit, while Rodriguez struck out five over three innings and surrendered one run. Blake Dickerson (Virginia Beach, Va.) earned the win for the Stripes after pitching the bottom of the fifth and allowing one run, while Gabe Gaeckle (Aptos, Calif.) surrendered the loss for the Stars. Bryce Eldridge (Vienna, Va.) earned the save.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Max Clark walked to lead off the bottom of the first for the Stars and eventually scored on a wild pitch to give the home team a 1-0 lead.
• After Stone Russell lined a triple into the gap in right center field, Camden Kozeal singled through the right side to give the Stripes their first run and tie the game at one in the second.
• The Stars regained the lead in the bottom of the third when RJ Hamilton scored on a throwing error to give his squad a 2-1 edge.
• Kendall George led off the top of the fifth with a double and came around to score on Bryce Rainer’s RBI single to knot the game up at two.
• The Stars put together a two-out rally to regain the lead in the fifth. Max Clark got it started with a single, and after a Blake Balsz walk, Kevin McGonigle drove Clark home to make it a 3-2 lead in favor of the Stars.
• Stone Russell and Danny Arambula each walked and reached scoring position before Kendall George plated both runners with a single up the middle as the Stripes took a 4-3 lead in the sixth.
• Bryce Eldridge entered for the Stripes in the bottom of the seventh and worked around a leadoff baserunner to secure the save and clinch the 4-3 victory.

OF NOTE

• With another hit in Wednesday’s win, Camden Kozeal leads 18U National Team Training Camp with a .750 (3-for-4) average.
• Stone Russell’s triple was the first three-bagger of the series. There have only been three extra-base hits allowed by the pitching staffs through the first two games.
• Max Clark and Stone Russell each scored two runs in the game to lead their teams.
• Patience was on display at the plate in the game, as the Stripes walked six times and the Stars drew four bases on balls.
• The Stripes did not have a lead in the game until Kendall George’s two-run single put them ahead for good in the sixth.
• The Stars’ pitching staff struck out double-digit batters for the second straight game, combining for 10 in the defeat. Christian Rodriguez led the way with five punch outs.
• The Stripes are now 1-0-1 in 18U National Team Training Camp play, while the Stars sit at 0-1-1.

ON DECK
The teams return to the field on Wednesday at 11:30 a.m. ET for the second game of the Stars vs. Stripes series at Lee County Sports Complex in Fort Myers, Florida.

SOCIAL MEDIA
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