Barczi's Bat Star of Show on Broadway Night
July 12, 2024 - New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL)
Sanford Mainers News Release
Sanford Mainers' Colin Barczi on game night
(, Credit: Madison Giltner Photography)
SANFORD, Maine - Down to their final out, the Sanford Mainers put on a show at Goodall Park as five straight Mainers reached base leading to a 6-5 walk-off win over the Keene SwampBats on Friday night.
Looking for their first win in the sixth meeting between the two sides in 2024, the SwampBats got an early lead largely due to Joe Jaconski's leadoff triple. One batter later, the visitors got on the board as Jake Koonin (Princeton) skied a fly ball to center field, which served as a sacrifice fly.
After that, Tommy Ellisen (UConn) settled into a rhythm. The right-handed pitcher, who went six shutout innings against the North Adams SteepleCats on the Fourth of July, struck out Sam Biller (UConn) and Nick Romano (Florida Atlantic).
"When I shook his hand after the game, he told me that might be the most fun summer ball game he's ever been a part of," manager Nic Lops said of Ellisen. "Rightfully so, he's a big reason why we had a chance to win that game late."
Sanford did not allow their starter to trail for long though as Devan Bade (Binghamton) and C.J. Willis (Quinnipiac) found themselves in scoring position for Evin Sullivan (Binghamton) with two outs in the bottom of the first.
Sullivan brought home both of them with a two-run single into right field. The Pennsylvania native's second hit of the summer was also his second consecutive one that brought home at least a run.
Ellisen held onto that lead for Sanford until the fourth inning as he and Charlie Oschell (Virginia) both settled into rhythms on the mound. However, after striking out Biller and Romano to escape the first inning with just one run allowed, Ellisen got beat by them in the fourth.
Biller and Romano singled with no outs before Ripken Reese (Kent State) walked to load the bases. Despite grounding out, two Big Ten hitters, Alex Calarco (Maryland) and Andrew Wiggins (Indiana), brought runs in against the Big East pitcher for a 3-2 Keene lead.
In the sixth, Willis, Colin Barczi (Vanderbilt) and Ray Velazquez (Vanderbilt) loaded the bases for Sanford against Ben Shenosky (Penn State). After those three singles, Mateo Hernandez (Austin Peay) shattered his bat on a ground ball back to Shenosky which was enough to score Willis for the tying run.
Sanford turned to Josh Kopetski (Rhode Island) in replace of Ellisen for the following half-inning. Ellisen's night was done after six innings of four-hit, three-run baseball that included ten strikeouts.
"I love how he's wired," Lops said of Ellisen and his ten-strikeout performance. "It's just compete, compete, focus and win every single pitch."
Kopestki turned out scoreless innings in the seventh and eighth innings stranding a SwampBat on base in each of them. The Maine native alongside Jackson Walsh (Wheaton), who came in for the ninth inning, helped Sanford's bullpen allow zero earned runs for the first time since July 1.
"We needed that," Lops said of his bullpen's effort. "Keene is a ballclub that can swing the bat. I have a ton of respect for that lineup one through nine, so for Kopetski to come and fill up the strike zone was huge."
Although Walsh and Kopetski allowed no earned runs, Walsh's line showed two unearned runs from the top of the ninth.
With two runners on base and two outs, Austin Hawke (Wake Forest) lifted a ball to Willis in right field. The Quinnipiac outfielder dropped the ball, which allowed Calarco and Wiggins to score, as Keene took a 5-3 lead.
Josh Gunther (Wake Forest), who pitched both the seventh and eighth innings for Keene to the tune of four strikeouts, was tasked with getting the final three outs for the SwampBats. Gunther started with a strikeout of Hernandez before forcing Caleb Shpur (UConn) to fly out to right field for the second out.
Down to their final out, Jared Davis (Virginia Tech) worked a four-pitch walk and stole second in a plate appearance that resulted in Jackson Tucker (St. John's) also reaching on a base on balls.
"It's a contagious game," Lops said of the lineup's ability to keep fighting in the ninth. "J.D. is not a guy that walks a lot, but for him to show that maturity and that leadership as our nine-hitter is huge. Then it led to Tucker and his mature plate appearance that resulted in another free pass."
With runners on the corners and a new pitcher in Stephen Bangs (Franklin Pierce), Bade delivered a single to the opposite field, right, which scored Davis and cut the deficit to one run.
Willis, who was coming off the error in the top of the inning, then worked ahead 3-1 in the next at-bat before blooping a ball over Calarco's head at first base. That hit, which was the Massachusetts native's third of the day, scored Tucker and tied the game at 5-5.
"C.J. is a very emotional and very passionate player," Lops said of his right fielder. "He plays with a lot of fire, and he holds himself to a high standard. The fact that he came in just unbelievably composed after the error was special. It shows great leadership and great maturity."
Barczi came to the plate after Willis tied the game with a chance to send the crowd home with a win. The Illinois native fell behind 1-2 in the count, but on the fourth pitch, he lined a ball at 102 miles per hour over Jaconski's head.
By the time that ball landed 351 feet away from home plate, Bade had already scored and the celebration was underway as Barczi, who was celebrating his birthday, secured Sanford's come-from-behind win.
Sanford improved to 6-0 against Keene this season and heads to Upper Valley tomorrow for a matchup with the Nighthawks, who are 3-1 against the Mainers this season. First pitch is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. and will stream exclusively on ESPN+.
Images from this story
 Sanford Mainers' Colin Barczi on game night (Madison Giltner Photography) |
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New England Collegiate Baseball League Stories from July 12, 2024
- Barczi's Bat Star of Show on Broadway Night - Sanford Mainers
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