Cowley shines in K-Tribe debut

Published in Sports on August 11, 2006 2:11 PM

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MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. -- Thomas Cowley was brilliant on the mound in his Carolina League debut as the Kinston Indians beat Myrtle Beach 3-2 in game one of a doubleheader Thursday.

The Pelicans, however, won the nighcap 7-5.

Cowley (1-0), who was called up from low-A Lake County on Monday, gave up just six hits and one earned run in six innings. Cowley went 4-5 with a 1.99 ERA at Lake County this season.

Brandon Pinckney started the scoring in the third inning, with an RBI single that brough home Micah Schilling. In the fifth inning, Schilling scored again, this time thanks to an RBI by Jordan Brown. Brown now leads the Carolina League with 73 RBIs this season.

Up 2-1 in the sixth inning, Kinston added some much needed insurance when Nathan Panther drove home Stephen Head with a sacrifice fly.

Myrtle Beach made it close in the seventh as the Pelicans loaded the bases with two outs in the inning. After the Pelicans Matt Young drew a bases-loaded walk to make the score 3-2 Kinston, closer T.J. Burton got the Pelicans Diory Hernandez to ground out to first baseman Stephen Head to end the game.

Burton racked up his 19th save of the season as Kinston won four games in a row for the first time in the second half.

After a two hour rain delay, game two got off to a great start with home runs by Nathan Panther and Stephen Head. Kinston led 4-0 until the bottom of the fifth inning, when Myrtle Beach exploded for six runs, going on to a 7-5 victory.

Randy Newsom (1-2) absorbed his second loss of the season giving up two hits and two unearned runs in one inning of work.

Kinston heads to Lynchburg, Virginia for a three game series against the Hillcats starting Friday night at 7 p.m. Joe Ness takes the mound for the K-Tribe.