The Lexington County Blowfish face a must-win game Friday night at home in their bid to win a Coastal Plain League championship after losing game one of the Petitt Cup series on the road to the Wilmington Sharks 7-5.

Kyle Percival got the start for the Blowfish, but the Sharks got to him early. Wilmington put up three runs in the second inning and by the time the fifth frame came around, Lexington County saw themselves down 5-0. 

Like they have many times this season, the Blowfish made what was seemingly a runaway game significantly more interesting. A comeback attempt started when Warren Holzemer hit a solo home run with two outs in the fifth inning and cut the lead to 5-1.

Gunnar Erickson came into the game in the sixth and surrendered a run to give the Sharks their five-run lead back. In the top of the seventh, vocal leader Ty Jackson hit a three-run home run and after seven innings, the Blowfish cut their deficit from five to one as they trailed 6-5.

The Sharks responded with another run, and as exciting as the Blowfish made the game, they couldn't conjure up more late inning magic like they have plenty of times in the last month.

With the Sharks taking game one, the series pivots to Lexington County Baseball Stadium, where game two will be played with first pitch slated for 7:05 p.m. It will be the first Petitt Cup Championship Series game to be hosted at the venue, which the Blowfish have called home since 2015. A win will push the series to a winner-take-all game three on Saturday in Lexington County. A loss will crown the Sharks as the Coastal Plain League champs. 

The Blowfish haven’t won the CPL title since 2012.