Staff report

HIGH POINT — Rowan County lost to High Point for the third time on Sunday night at Finch Field.
High Point came from behind to win, 8-7, on Patrick Callaghan’s walk-off single to left with two men out in the ninth.
Rowan (9-4) has been good against everyone else, but the defending state champs have lost to High Point Post 87, last season’s state runner-up, at Newman Park, at Kannapolis’ Spring Fling and now at Finch Field.
Rowan got off to a good start and took a 2-0 lead in the second inning. Tanner File singled home a run and another run scored when Chandler Blackwelder’s grounder to short was misplayed.
Rowan starting pitcher Caleb Link took that 2-0 lead into the bottom of the third, but Kip Brandenburg smacked a grand slam, his eighth homer of the year, to put Post 87 on top, 4-2. Rowan called on Colby Myrick and then Hayden Setzer to get out of the inning.
Rowan’s big inning was the fourth. Rowan pushed across five runs. Lee Poteat walked with the bases loaded to cut Rowan’s deficit to 4-3. Hunter Shepherd’s hit scored two runs to put Rowan in front, and Jake Pritchard’s double drove home two more.
Dylan Wilkinson shut down Rowan’s offense after that.
High Point got a single run back in the bottom of the fourth, but Setzer held that 7-5 lead through the seventh.
John Owen pitched the eighth for Rowan and maintained the lead.
Shepherd came in to start the ninth, his second relief appearance of the season, but he ran into immediate trouble. Two walks were sandwiched around Luke Gesell’s single, and High Point (10-3) had the bases loaded with none out.
A wild pitch made it 7-6, but Shepherd struck out Brandenburg.
A sacrifice fly by Wilkinson to medium left field tied the game, and the winning run moved to third on the throw home.
Callaghan followed with his game-winning hit.
Rowan had a six-game winning streak snapped. Rowan hadn’t lost since falling to High Point in late May.
Rowan returns to action at Newman Park tonight against Greensboro at 7 p.m.

Rowan County 020 500 000 — 7
High Point 004 100 003 — 8
W — Wilkinson. L — Hunter Shepherd (0-1).
HR — Kip Brandenburg (8).