After dropping 10 straight, the Sweets were looking for a change of scenery back at Borleske. However, the Springfield Drifters had other ideas early on.

In the first inning, with one out, Bryant Starr sent one over the tall wall in left field for his third home run of the season. In the second, the Drifters added another. With one gone, Elliot Brown singled and Jordan Justice was hit by a pitch to put two on. Nick Gimino walked to load the bases, and a wild pitch allowed Brown to score while Justice and Gimino advanced. Jack Brooks then walked, but the Drifters left the bases loaded with a 2-0 lead.

In the fourth, the Drifters tacked on another run. Gimino led off with a single to right, Starr worked a walk, and Nolan Miller came through with an RBI single to right, bringing home Gimino to make it 3-0.

In the bottom of the fifth, the Sweets finally scratched the scoreboard. Isaiah Chacon opened the inning with a walk and advanced to second on Andrew Demianew’s single to center. Jacob Talbot moved both runners up with a sacrifice bunt, and Esteban Olazaba drove in Chacon with a groundout to second. At the end of five, the Sweets trailed 3-1.

In the sixth, with Sweets starter Alex Jennings’ day done, the Drifters capitalized. Brooks was hit by a pitch, and a walk to Starr followed. Miller legged out an infield single to load the bases, and Preston Armstrong walked to force in a run. A wild pitch during Sam Weber’s at-bat brought home Starr, and another during Brown’s plate appearance scored Miller. The Sweets escaped the jam, but not before the Drifters plated three to take a 6-1 lead.

Springfield added two more in the top of the seventh to stretch the lead to 8-1, but the Sweets again showed some life. Talbot reached on a dropped third strike to start the inning, and Olazaba followed with a walk. After Tristan Schaefer struck out, Cole Rogers ripped a triple down the right field line, scoring both runners. A wild pitch during Trevor Tse’s at-bat allowed Rogers to score as the Sweets pulled within 8-4.

However, in the eighth, the Drifters slammed the door with a four-run frame to take game one, 12-4, handing Walla Walla its 11th straight loss.

The Sweets will look to snap the skid tomorrow back at Borleske Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. Tune in to the final home series of the season on the Walla Walla Sweets YouTube channel. The pregame show begins at 6:15.