Posted on

Showdown

Kevin Cron knocked in two runs as Falmouth topped Hyannis.

 
Hyannis has owned the West for much of this season in part because it has owned Falmouth. Though the Commodores had the flashier numbers, the Harbor Hawks won each of the first four meetings, making it tough for Falmouth to make up ground.

Hyannis still takes the seasons series thanks to those four wins, but Falmouth has won the last two.

And the division is now co-owned.

With an 8-4 victory over Hyannis last night, Falmouth moved into a 48-point tie with the Harbor Hawks atop the Western Division. Cotuit, which lost to Bourne last night, is a point back.

For Falmouth, last night’s win continued a surge that always seemed close. The Commodores have won four in a row, their first such streak of the season, and they now lead the West in wins with 24. Hyannis is 23-16-2.

Falmouth was shut out for the first three innings last night by late addition Logan Carman (Southern Maine), a D-III All-American. Hyannis needs some help with departures of starters Jeff Hoffman, Patrick Andrews and Austin Pettibone.

It looked like Carman could provide the boost, but ultimately, Falmouth’s big bats represented a tough introduction. The Commodores scored five runs in the fourth and never looked back.

Rhys Hoskins (Sacramento State) led the parade for Falmouth with four hits, including a home run and a double. Kevin Cron (TCU) went 1-for-3 with three RBI, while Kevin Newman (Arizona) and Conner Hale (State College of Florida) had two hits and an RBI apiece.

On the mound, Trey Teakell (TCU) gave up three runs, two earned, in four innings. Kevin Mooney (Maryland) got the win with two innings of relief. Donny Murray (Holy Cross), Brent Stong (Bradley) and Hunter Brothers (Lipscomb) pitched a hitless inning each and combined for five strikeouts.

While Falmouth’s win tightens things up, the division title is still going to come down to the final three games. Falmouth plays Cotuit twice in its final three, which could make things very interesting. In the meantime, Hyannis has Wareham before two straight games against East foe Y-D.

A number of scenarios could play out. For now, Falmouth has made things a little bit tighter.

 

Harwich 5, Chatham 3; Harwich 3, Chatham 1

Harwich has been treading water for about two weeks but took a big step up yesterday with a doubleheader sweep of first-place Chatham. Harwich is now back in second place in the East, a point ahead of Orleans. In game one, Aaron Bummer (Nebraska) went six strong innings, allowing just one earned run. Mason McCullough (North Carolina) worked a perfect seventh for the save. A balanced attack led the offense, with Ben Moore (Alabama), A.J. Reed (Kentucky), Ryan Lindemuth (William & Mary) and Blair DeBord (Kansas State) driving in one run each. In game two, Harwich got a home run from Gunnar Heidt (College of Charleston) to take a lead it never lost. Brett Austin (NC State) added two hits and an RBI, while Reed knocked in one. Dillon Peters (Texas) pitched three scoreless frames and Ian Tompkins (Western Kentucky) went four strong innings for the win, allowing just one run and striking out six.

 

Y-D 5, Orleans 3

The Red Sox stopped Orleans’ eight-game winning streak with a 5-3 victory and clinched the final playoff spot in the East in the process. Facing Jared Miller (Vanderbilt), who had turned in two consecutive dominant starts, Y-D scored five runs in the first four innings and made the lead stand up. Alex Blandino (Stanford) and Jose Trevino (Oral Roberts) knocked in two runs each while Taylor White (UNLV) drove in the other. Auston Bousfield (Ole Miss) had two hits and scored two runs. On the mound, Clay Smith (St. Louis) gave up three runs in six innings for the win. Alexander Katz (St. John’s) pitched 1.1 scoreless innings in his Cape debut before Kody Kerski (Sacred Heart) finished it off.

 

Bourne 2, Cotuit 0

With Jaron Long and Austin Gomber departing, the Braves are going to need some help in the starting rotation come playoff time. After last night, Jacob Lindgren (Mississippi State) may be up to the task. A starter in the spring but a reliever all summer, Lindgren made his first Cape start and dominated, tossing six shutout innings and striking out seven as the Braves shut out Cotuit. Jack English (Florida Gulf Coast) struck out four in two innings before Lindgren’s Mississippi State teammate Will Cox struck out the side in the ninth for the save. For Cotuit, newcomer Dalton Potts (Tennessee-Martin) went five strong innings but Bourne got to him for two runs that proved to be enough. Mark Laird (LSU) and Jeff Gardner (Louisville) drove in a run each.

 

Wareham 8, Brewster 1

The Gatemen pounded out 19 hits and got a strong pitching performance from Andro Cutura (Southeastern Louisana) en route to a lopsided victory. Cutura, a hard-luck loser several times, went seven innings and struck out six while allowing just a run. He also finally received some run support. Daniel Rosenbaum (Louisville) had three hits and a home run, while Trevor Podratz (Hawaii), Cole Stancil (St. Leo) and Ethan Gross (Memphis) also had three hits. Chris Chinea (LSU) had two hits and drove in two runs. With the loss and a win by Y-D, Brewster officially was eliminated from the playoff race.

 

What to Watch

Second place in the East may well be decided today as Harwich hosts a double-header with Orleans beginning at 4:30 p.m. The Mariners have a one-point edge on Orleans for second place.
 

Posted on

More Magic

Jimmy Pickens hit a home run and a walk-off bunt single to lead Chatham to a division-clinching victory.

 
The Chatham Anglers have a lot going for them this season – solid starting pitching, a terrific bullpen, some ever-increasing pop in the batting order and a team on-base percentage that would make Billy Beane proud.

A little magic doesn’t hurt either.

Chatham clinched the Eastern Division title on Wednesday night with its fifth walk-off victory of the summer, a 6-5, 10-inning thriller over Y-D. The division crown is Chatham’s first since it shared the title with Y-D in 2001.

The Anglers were coming off an 8-1 loss to Brewster heading into Wednesday’s game, and they fell behind Y-D 5-0 despite having Tommy Lawrence (Maine) on the mound. Lawrence hadn’t given up a run since June, but was touched up for four in five innings.

Chatham got one back in the sixth on a Mitchell Gonsolus (Gonzaga) sacrifice fly but went to the ninth trailing 5-1. If Chatham was to deliver more heroics, it would be the toughest road yet.

The Anglers did it anyway.

Jimmy Pickens (Michigan State) smashed a two-run home run to get Chatham closer and to breathe new life into the comeback. It was the fourth home run in as many games for Pickens, who suddenly ranks second in the league in long balls.

Michael Russell (North Carolina) followed with a base hit and Gonsolus got Chatham within one on an RBI double. Brandon Sedell (Nova Southeastern) then brought home the tying run with a single.

After keeping Y-D off the board in the top of the 10th, Chatham went back to work. Blake Butera (Boston College) was hit by a pitch and Dante Flores (USC) walked. J.D. Davis (Cal State Fullerton), who was 3-for-5, was intentionally walked, bringing Pickens to the dish, with the chance to be a hero.

The way he’d been hitting, the script called for a grand slam. Pickens bunted instead, Y-D had no play and Butera sprinted home with the winning run.

Pickens finished the day 4-for-6 with three RBI, while Davis was 3-for-5 with two runs scored. The emergence of those two – they’re hitting .483 and .436 over the last two weeks – is another reason to like Chatham’s chances, but they’re not the only heroes.

Magic like Chatham’s comes from a team effort – and the Anglers are pretty good at that.

 

Orleans 8, Brewster 2

Orleans owns the 2013 season’s longest winning streak, and it just keeps going. The Firebirds stretched it to eight last night with an 8-2 victory over the Whitecaps. The Firebirds led 3-2 before scoring five in the ninth to pull away. Ross Kivett (Kansas State) went 2-for-5 with a homer and three RBI to lead the offense, and four of his teammates added two hits each. On the mound, Bobby Poyner (Florida) went five shutout innings, giving up just two hits while striking out one. Conor Harber (Western Nevada CC), Jeremy Rhoades (Illinois State) and Trevor Kelley (North Carolina) pitched a scoreless inning apiece out of the bullpen.

 

Hyannis 2, Bourne 0

Cotuit and Falmouth both won, but the Harbor Hawks stayed one point ahead thanks to a shutout victory over the Braves. Cy Sneed (Dallas Baptist) delivered his best start of the summer, striking out five and allowing just four hits in six innings. Kevin Doherty (Virginia) made his Cape League debut and worked a scoreless frame before Jordan Foley (Central Michigan) finished off the shutout with a two-inning save. Chase Griffin (Georgia Southern) and Brian Anderson (Arkansas) each had two hits and scored a run to pace the offense. For Bourne, Kris Gardner (Wichita State) was the hard-luck lose after his best start of the season. He allowed just two unearned runs in seven innings.

 

Falmouth 13, Harwich 1

The Commodores won their third straight with their second 13-run performance of the summer. Facing Harwich standout Chandler Shepherd (Kentucky), Falmouth took a 2-0 lead in the first before blowing the game open and chasing Shepherd with six runs in the fifth. Casey Gillaspie (Wichita State) hit his league-best eighth home run, part of a 2-for-3, four RBI night. Troy Stein (Texas A&M) also homered and drove in two, while Kevin Cron (TCU) went 3-for-5 with two RBI. Starting pitcher John Means (West Virginia) didn’t need all the offense. He struck out seven and allowed just one hit in six innings, taking a no-hitter into the fifth. Falmouth remains two points back of Hyannis in the West.

 

Cotuit 6, Wareham 3

Cotuit also kept pace in the West race with a victory over Wareham. Christian Cecilio (San Francisco) gave up a run in 4.2 innings before the bullpen took over. Joel Seddon (South Carolina) picked up the win and Brian Miller (Vanderbilt) grabbed the save with four strikeouts in two innings. Bradley Zimmer (San Francisco) led the offense with three hits, including a triple, and two RBI. Danny Diekroeger (Stanford) also had three hits, while Austin Byler (Nevada) had two hits and an RBI. For Wareham, Sean Newcomb (Hartford) struck out seven in three innings while giving up two runs.

 

What to Watch

We’ll finally get a little separation in the West with Falmouth visiting Hyannis. The Falmouth starter is TBA, while Hyannis goes with newcomer Logan Carman (Southern Maine), a Division III All-American. In the East, Chatham is hosting a doubleheader with Harwich, beginning at 4 p.m.