DeLoach's three-run blast in bottom of the seventh propels Keene past Vermont
July 16, 2011 - New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL)
Keene Swamp Bats News Release
KEENE, NH - With two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning, Keene designated hitter Brett DeLoach (Blackshear, GA/Georgia) crushed a go-ahead three-run home run to right field to lead the Keene Swamp Bats to an eventual 5-2 win over the Vermont Mountaineers in New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL) action on Saturday night at Alumni Field in front of 1,649 fans on Buddy Lamothe Night.
Keene snaps Vermont's (16-12) five-game winning streak to improve to 19-11 on the season.
Both teams joined forces for tonight's game to raise money for Buddy Lamothe who was paralyzed earlier this year during a rafting trip in Texas. Lamothe, a member of the 2010 Keene Swamp Bats, was slated to play for the Vermont Mountaineers this summer before the accident.
The Mountaineers kicked off the fundraiser earlier this week on Wednesday, July 13, raising 825 dollars by raffling off Vermont and Keene merchandise. The Swamp Bats continued the fundraiser at home tonight raising 789 dollars for a grand total of 1,614 dollars. All proceeds will go directly to Lamothe to aid his rehabilitation efforts. Fans who still wish to donate can email donations@thevermontmountaineers.com.
Kyle Gehrs (Independence, MO/Iowa Western CC) earned the win (4-0) in relief tossing two scoreless and hitless innings with two strikeouts. Liam Rafferty (Westminster, MA/Sacred Heart) suffered the loss in relief (1-3) on one inning of work, three runs (all unearned), two hits, no walks and one punchout. Eddie Medina (Staten Island, NY/St. John's) notched his team-leading third save of the season with a 1-2-3 inning in the ninth.
Tied 2-2 in the seventh with two outs, Alex Chittenden (Indianapolis, IN/Louisville) blooped a single to right field to keep the inning going. After Kevin Brown (Northborough, MA/Bryant) reached on a fielding error by second baseman Brett Johnson (Little Elm, TX/TUC), DeLoach belted his sixth homer of the season off of Rafferty to give Keene its 5-2 lead.
Mountaineers first baseman Rob Kelly (Aurora, CO/St. Anselm) tied up the contest in the sixth with a towering two-run shot to deep right field, his third of the season, to even the score at 2-2 off of Keene starter Jeff Thompson (Greenville, IN/Louisville). Thompson was handed the no-decision on six innings pitched, two runs (both earned), four hits, three walks and a game high seven strikeouts.
Ahead 2-0 in the fifth, Swamp Bats right fielder Esteban Gomez (Brooklyn, NY/San Jacinto) kept the Mountaineers off of the scoreboard gunning down Matt Wollenzon (Lakewood, CO/Austin Peay) at home trying to score from second base on a single to right field by Tyler Young (Coatesville, PA/Louisville).
Colby May (Guyton, GA/Georgia) gave Keene its first lead of the game in the fourth, 2-0, with a two-run home run to right centerfield, his team-leading seventh longball on the season, against Mountaineers starter Matt Whitehouse (Diamond Bar, CA/Cal Irvine). Whitehouse, who was also given a no-decision, pitched six innings on six hits, two runs (both earned), three walks and three strikeouts.
Keene travels to Laconia tomorrow to play the Muskrats at 6:05 pm.
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New England Collegiate Baseball League Stories from July 16, 2011
- Westerners win 4th straight against 'Cats - North Adams SteepleCats
- Mainers Sweep Double Header In OOB - Sanford Mainers
- Keene Snaps Mountaineers Five Game Win Streak 5-2 - Vermont Mountaineers
- DeLoach's three-run blast in bottom of the seventh propels Keene past Vermont - Keene Swamp Bats
- First Place - Coming this Week - Danbury Westerners
- Davis Leads Mainers To Victory - Sanford Mainers
- Mainers Hang On 3-2 - North Adams SteepleCats
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