It was a back-and-forth rollercoaster affair in the eighth game of the Deep River Series opposing the High Point-Thomasville HiToms and Asheboro Copperheads at historic Finch Field. Ty Wilmsmeyer’s walk-off three-run homer capped off an HPT comeback for the ages.
Finch Field hosted a charity softball game in the afternoon between the Thomasville Fire and Police departments to benefit Special Olympics Davidson County and Thomasville Communities and Schools. Thomasville PD eked out a 9-8 win in six innings.
Following that game, the HiToms and Copperheads took the field. Asheboro surged in the middle innings to take a 6-0 lead, but just as things seemed to look bleak for HPT, things got interesting.
In the bottom of the 8th inning, Hogan Windish continued his tear at the plate, hitting a three-run home run to cut the deficit in half. After walks were issued to Noah Ledford and CJ Johnson, Tom Caufield drove them in with a triple. Caufield later scored on a wild pitch, and the game was suddenly tied. Tristan Snyder worked quickly and kept things knotted up through the end of the 9th, and the HiToms went to extras at Finch Field for the first time this season.
The Copperheads took advantage of the international tiebreaker runners placed at first and second base to start extra innings, re-gaining a three-run lead. Facing adversity once again, the HiToms needed four runs to win in the bottom of the 10th. After HPT scored a run on a Parker Stinnett error, Asheboro forced two outs, and the HiToms’ backs were against the wall.
Ty Wilmsmeyer, who entered the game in the 6th inning as a defensive replacement for Cole Simpson, represented the game-tying run at the plate. He sent the 1-1 pitch high in the air to right field, and it carried into the net protecting Ball Park Road for a walk-off 3-run homer. After a crazy, back-and-forth game, the HiToms prevailed 10-9.
High Point-Thomasville’s next game is Tuesday night, when they will travel to McCrary Park for a Deep River rematch with the Copperheads. First pitch of that game is scheduled for 7:05 and is available to stream on FloBaseball.tv.