Maybe it’s something about the name.
In its second game as the Harbor Hawks, Hyannis went to extra innings on Tuesday for the second night in a row. And just like Monday, they came out on top. Casey McElroy (Auburn) went 4-for-4 and tied the game with a home run and Jason Nappi (Harding) drove in the winning run in the 10th with a sacrifice fly as Hyannis beat Wareham 4-3.
The Harbor Hawks were stymied early by Cape League veteran Max Perlman (Harvard), who was making his first appearance for Wareham since 2008. Perlman, who missed last year with an injury, went seven scoreless innings, scattering six hits and striking out three. Wareham wasn’t getting much either against Hyannis starter Brian Dupra (Notre Dame), an 11th-round pick this spring. He struck out seven and allowed just two hits in five shutout innings.
Wareham broke through with single runs in the sixth, eighth and ninth innings, but Hyannis wasn’t done. McElroy’s two-out, two-run blast tied the game and forced extras. In the top of the 10th, the Gatemen loaded the bases but reliever Tyler Mizenko (Winthrop) came on and got out of the jam. That set the stage for another Hyannis rally. With A.J. Pettersen (Minnesota) at third, Nappi hit a fly ball to center that was deep enough to score the winning run.
It was the third RBI of the season for Nappi, a recent addition to the roster. He hit .413 with eight home runs this spring for Harding University in Arkansas.
Elsewhere
The first dominant pitching performance of the summer was authored in Falmouth last night. The Commodores’ Mark Pope (Georgia Tech) struck out 11, walked just one and allowed two hits in seven shutout innings against Cotuit. Steven Gruver (Tennessee) worked two scoreless innings to combine with Pope on the shutout as Falmouth won 1-0. Pope, a sophomore, is in his second go-round with Falmouth. Last year he started four games and made eight other appearances on his way to a 2-2, 2.10 summer. He had impressive numbers this spring and appears to be picking up where he left off — and then some. Falmouth’s only offense came from Kevin Medrano (Missouri State), who went 3-for-4 and scored the go-ahead run on a throwing error. Medrano is hitting .556 through two games.
Brewster’s Mike Palazzone (Georgia) made his first appearance after a rough spring and got his summer off to a strong start. Palazzone struck out four in 7.1 scoreless innings. He combined with Matt Larkins (UC Riverside) on a shutout as Brewster beat Orleans 5-0. The Whitecaps got RBI singles from Drew Martinez (Memphis) and Kirk Singer (Long Beach State). Kenny Long (Illinois State) had an impressive line out of the bullpen for Orleans, striking out five in 2.2 innings.
Y-D moved to 2-0 and handed Bourne its second straight loss with a 4-3 victory at Red Wilson Field. Brett Mooneyham (Stanford), who’s had his ups and downs at Stanford, started his Cape League career on the upswing. He struck out seven and allowed one run in five innings of work. Dusty Robinson (Fresno State), Joe Panik (St. John’s), Jordan Ribera (Fresno State) and Beau Taylor (Central Florida) all drove in runs for the Red Sox.
Chatham and Harwich joined Hyannis in playing extras and the Anglers came out on top 3-1 in 11 innings for their second win of the year. Mark Ginther (Oklahoma State) had another big night, going 2-for-4 with two RBI. He drove in the go-ahead run in the 11th. Ricky Oropesa (USC) got his first two hits of the summer and also drove in a run. Division II star Joe Holtmeyer (Nebraska at Omaha) got the start for Harwich and allowed a run on four hits in six innings. He struck out three.
What to Watch
Rivals Orleans and Chatham meet for the first time today in Chatham. It’s a 4 p.m. start. Cameron Hobson (Dayton) is scheduled to go for Orleans against Joe Zimmerman (New Orleans) and Chatham.
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