ZEBULON – The Delmarva Shorebirds scored three times in the fifth inning to break open a 1-0 game as they cruised to a 9-3 victory over the Carolina Mudcats in the final game of the regular season at Five County Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Delmarva (53-78 overall, 30-36 second half) opened the scoring in the third inning on a sacrifice fly in the third and a 1-0 advantage.
That lead would be plenty for Blake Money (W, 4-7) who worked five shutout innings in his final start of the season.
With the Shorebirds still leading by a run in the fifth, Delmarva added more offense on a pair of fifth inning long balls; a two-run shot by Colin Tuft, his first of the season and two batters later, Edwin Amparo drove his second home run of the series for a 4-0 lead.
That lead would stretch to 6-0 with single tallies in the sixth and seventh for Delmarva.
Carolina (78-51 overall, 37-27 second half) scored all three of their runs in the last of the eighth inning when Daniel Guilarte doubled home two and Reece Walling added an RBI single.
However, that would be as close as the Mudcats would get as Delmarva added three in the ninth for the 9-3 final.
The Mudcats finish the regular season with their best record since joining the Carolina League in 2012 and ended the year with the best record overall mark in the Carolina League for the 2024 season.
Carolina will embark on their playoff journey for the second straight season as they begin play in the Carolina League playoffs against the Fredericksburg Nationals on Tuesday night at The Virginia Credit Union Stadium for game one of the division series.
The series will shift to Five County Stadium for game two and if needed, game three of the series on Thursday and Friday.
