As pitching combinations go, you could do worse than a pair of Mississippi State Bulldogs.
The College World Series champs know a little something about winning.
Falmouth trotted out Mikey Tepper and K.C. Hunt on Friday night. With a little help from Charles Harrison (UCLA), the duo pitched a shutout in a 2-0 victory over Yarmouth-Dennis. Tepper got the win and Hunt picked up the save.
For the champs this spring, Tepper posted a 5.25 ERA in his freshman season. He’s been great with Falmouth, with no earned runs allowed across his first three appearances. On Friday, he tossed five scoreless innings and gave up just one hit.
Harrison went two shutout frames before Hunt picked up the Mississippi State torch and struck out four over two scoreless frames. Hunt had a 4.80 ERA in 15 relief appearances for the Bulldogs in the spring. Like Tepper, he also has a 0.00 ERA so far on the Cape. The save he earned Friday is his first of the season.
Y-D pitchers were pretty good, too. Jared Lyons (George Mason) allowed two runs in 4.2 innings and struck out eight. But Falmouth got a home run from Taylor Smith (Texas A&M) and an RBI from Douglas Hodo (Texas) to back the strong pitching.
The win is the second straight for Falmouth, which sits at 10-13-2. Y-D is 11-10-6.
Bourne 4, Orleans 3
Even when things don’t go well for the Bourne Braves, they go well. Eric Adler (Wake Forest) allowed a run for the first time all season as Orleans tied the game in the ninth. But Bourne won on a walk-off in the bottom half, the second walk-off in their last four games. Peyton Chatagnier (Ole Miss) was the momentary hero for Orleans, his homer in the top of the ninth ending Adler’s 11-game scoreless streak. A single and a walk kept the threat alive, but Adler escaped further trouble with the help of a great catch by Dalton Rushing (Louisville), which set the stage for more Brave heroics. Joe Lampe (Arizona State) and Zach Agnos (East Carolina) walked and Peter Burns (Boston College) knocked a single to center field for the game-winning hit. Tanner Schobel (Virginia Tech) added three hits for the Braves, while Christian Knapczyk (Louisville) had two. Orleans’ Luke Keaschall (San Francisco) went 4-for-5 for his fourth straight multi-hit game. Bourne is the first team in the league to 20 wins at 20-3-3. Orleans is 10-11-4.
Harwich 5, Wareham 2
Harwich gave up an early lead but got it back with a late push en route to a win over Wareham. Josh Hood (Penn), Dylan Phillips (Kansas State) and Zack Prajzner (Notre Dame) drove in one run each for the Mariners, while Pres Cavenaugh (UNC Greensboro) had two hits. Spencer Giesting (Charlotte) started and tossed four shutout innings. Matthew Pushard (Maine) was lights out from the bullpen, striking out five in 3.1 scoreless frames. Jim Jarvis (Alabama) led Wareham with three hits. Harwich has won two straight and goes to 14-8-4. Wareham is 9-14-4.
Brewster 3, Chatham 1
After a loss to Orleans on Thursday, it was a quick bounce back Friday for the Whitecaps, who remained two points clear of Harwich for first place in the East. Three early tallies were plenty for Brewster pitchers, who didn’t allow a run until the eighth. Brain Fitzpatrick (Rutgers) struck out six across four scoreless innings, Michael Prosecky (Louisville) struck out eight of the 12 batters he faced, and Dale Stanavich (Rutgers) tossed 1.2 scoreless innings for his fourth save. He now ranks second in the league in saves. Chris Lanzilli (Wake Forest) had two hits and an RBI, and Will Simpson (Washington) drove in a run to lead the Brewster offense. Brewster goes to 16-8-2 and Chatham falls to 10-15-3.
Cotuit 6, Hyannis 1
Somebody’s got to take that second playoff spot in the West. Despite five straight losses, Cotuit stayed in contention. And in snapping that skid Friday, the Kettleers moved back into second palace. Cotuit was hit hard by the draft but still has some pieces and they were on display in this one. Jace Grady (Dallas Baptist)m Luke Gold (Boston College), Noah Bridges (UNC Wilmington) and Ryan Ritter (Kentucky) each had one RBI as Cotuit’s full lineup got in on the act. Quinn Matthews (Stanford) allowed one run in 4.1 innings. After a lightning and rain delay, Harrison Cohen (George Washington) shut the door before darkness called it, pitching 1.2 scoreless innings. Cotuit is 12-14, while Hyannis is 5-21.
WHAT TO WATCH
Falmouth visits Cotuit in an important West matchup. The Commodores are two points back of the Kettleers for second place.
RELATED POSTS
Dominic Keegan was a late-round pick in the Major League Baseball Draft last week but has already made the decision to return to Vanderbilt. That also means the Massachusetts native should be...
Cotuit’s current roster was hit harder than most by the draft, with 11 players departing after hearing their nakes called. No surprise that the Kettleers hit a rough patch soon after the proceedings....