Hampton, V.A. – The Greenville Yard Gnomes dropped a heartbreaker in their 2025 regular season opener, falling to the Peninsula Pilots 11-10 in 11 innings on the road.
The Yard Gnomes struck first in the opening frame. Brody Gardner and Jesse Ponce led off with a single each, and Jon Howard delivered a sacrifice fly to left field, scoring Gardner for his first RBI of the season. The Pilots answered quickly, tying the game with Carlos Pena touching home off a Grayson Fitzwater double.
Greenville exploded for four runs in the fourth. Joe Whitaker launched a solo blast to left field, followed by Gardner’s looping RBI single over first base to score Collin Hughes. Ponce then drove in Berry with a single through the 6-4 gap, and Danny Ramirez capped the rally with an RBI to bring in Gardner. Starting pitcher for the Gnomes, Maddox Jones, leaves after four strong innings, allowing just two hits and holding a 5-1 lead.
The Pilots surged late, tying the game at 5-5 behind sacrifice flies from Henry Garcia and Kyle Edwards, along with a clutch two-run homerun from Pena.
In the tenth, Corey Berry brings home both Kiebler and Hughes on a two-run double to center. Ramirez followed with a double of his own to plate Berry, giving Greenville an 8-5 lead. But the Pilots would not go away, capitalizing on a pair of walks and a wild pitch to knot the score at 8-8.
The Gnomes reclaimed the lead in the eleventh. Lillis came through, driving in Ramirez and Howard with a clutch RBI-single, pushing the lead to 10-8. However, the Pilots responded in the bottom half, scoring off another walk and a wild pitch. Edwards then delivered the walk-off single to secure an 11-10 victory for Peninsula.
Dylan Morrill claims the win for Pilots, allowing just one earned run over two innings. Alex McHale receives the loss for Greenville, allowing five runs after just 0.2 innings of work.
Up next: The Yard Gnomes return home to Guy Smith Stadium to host the Holly Spring Salamanders on Friday night at 6:30 p.m.