Gulls take 1-0 Pell Bridge Series lead with 7-6 win in thriller at Cardines
June 13, 2015 - New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL)
Newport Gulls News Release
NEWPORT, R.I. - The Newport Gulls battled foggy conditions and mounted a late-inning comeback, erasing a three-run deficit, to defeat the Ocean State Waves 7-6 at Cardines Field on Friday, June 12.
Sophomore right-hander Brendan Spagnuolo (Vanderbilt) recorded his second save of the season, coming on with the bases loaded with nobody out in relief of sophomore right-hander Carson LaRue (Oklahoma State) in the top of the ninth inning. Spagnuolo induced an RBI groundout for the inning's first out - which put the Waves within one run - but a liner smoked at third baseman Martin Taveras (URI) caught the lead runner off the bag at third, resulting in an unassisted double play to end the contest.
Sophomore right-hander Brad Wegman (USC) picked up the win in relief, working three innings.
Senior left-hander Hunter Schryver (Villanova), who posted a 3.19 ERA over 13 appearances (five starts) with Ocean State last summer, lasted five innings, allowing just two runs on five hits with a walk and five strikeouts.
Ocean State starter Mason Perryman (USC) took a no decision, allowing one run on four hits with a walk and a strikeout in four innings of work.
The Gulls struck for a pair of hits in the bottom of the frame, but failed to cash in on the opportunity. Senior second baseman Reed Gamache (Binghamton) - himself a former Wave - singled on a ground ball through the hole on the right side of the Waves infield before junior right fielder Cooper Elliott (Washington State) singled off the wall in right centerfield to put runners on the corners with one out. The ensuing batter, senior first baseman Max Beermann (Villanova), lined into an inning-ending double play to end the threat.
The Waves responded immediately in the top of the second inning when sophomore shortstop Alex King (St. Louis) ripped an RBI double off the wall in left field to plate the game's first run.
Newport plated the equalizer in the bottom of the frame when sophomore catcher Drew Lugbauer (Michigan) was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning, and came around to score on junior third baseman Taveras' RBI groundout.
Ocean State pulled ahead when senior first baseman Tim Lynch (Southern Mississippi) led off the fourth inning with a double down the left field line past a diving Taveras at the hot corner. Lynch got a bad read on the ensuing batter's (junior centerfielder Dylan Burdeaux (Southern Mississippi)) double down the right field line and had to hold up at third base. Senior left fielder Buck McCarthy (Bryant) delivered an RBI sacrifice fly, plating Lynch, to put the Waves in front 2-1. Schryver escaped the frame without any further damage when the Gulls defense tagged out Burdeaux at the plate in a rundown and Schryver struck out King on a breaking ball on the outside corner.
The Gulls threatened in the bottom of the fourth inning when left fielder Jon Littell (Oklahoma State) doubled down the left field line with two outs, but Newport left the tying run in scoring position when Waves second baseman Nick Dawson (Southern Mississippi) snared a line drive off the bat of Taveras to retire the side.
Southpaw Richard Lovelady (Kennesaw State) came on in relief of Perryman to start the fifth inning and served up a double to the first batter he faced, Gulls shortstop Kevin Baker (Roger Williams). Centerfielder Joven Afenir (Kansas), who went 5-for-5 in a win over the Keene Swamp Bats earlier in the week, followed with an infield single to put runners on the corners with nobody out. With the heart of the order coming up, Lovelady managed to escape the jam by getting Gamache to line into a double play and Elliott to pop out to third base.
Wegman replaced Schryver in the sixth inning and allowed a two-run homer to Waves junior catcher Chuckie Robinson (Southern Mississippi) to increase the Ocean State lead to 4-1.
Newport battled back in the home half of the sixth inning, loading the bases with nobody out and chased Lovelady from the contest. Ocean State junior right-hander Matt Murphy (Assumption) came on to put out the fire and was able to escape with the one-run lead intact after getting a tailor-made double play ball and a strikeout to get out of the jam with just two runs crossing the plate.
After Wegman delivered a scoreless seventh inning, the offense came to life in the bottom of the frame against the Waves bullpen. Gamache delivered a game-tying RBI single to right before Beermann plated the go-ahead-run on an RBI sacrifice fly to left. Senior designated hitter Jeremy Wolf (Trinity) broke it wide open with a two-run double off the right-centerfield wall to give the Gulls a 7-4 lead.
Lynch led off the eighth inning with a double down the right field line before Taveras made a pair of spectacular defensive plays at the hot corner to rob a pair of would-be-hits off Wegman, who got a ground-out to end the inning.
Coming out of the bullpen, LaRue worked a shaky ninth inning, allowing two singles and a walk, but it was Spagnuolo who recorded all three outs to preserve the victory and pick up his first save of the season.
The Gulls improve to 4-2 with the victory, and now trail the Mystic Schooners by one game for first place in the NECBL Southern Division, tied for second with the Plymouth Pilgrims and half a game ahead of the fourth place New Bedford Bay Sox.
Newport will be back in action on Saturday, June 13, when they take on the Bay Sox on the road at Paul Walsh Field at 6:30 p.m. Rob Masse and Tom Porter have the call on the NECBL Broadcast Network.
The Gulls and the Waves, meanwhile, will re-ignite their in-state rivalry on June 20 at Old Mountain Field in Wakefield, R.I., for Game Two of the six-game Pell Bridge Series.
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New England Collegiate Baseball League Stories from June 13, 2015
- Ten-run third helps Waves over Mainers, 11-5 - Ocean State Waves
- Vermont wins over Westerners - Vermont Mountaineers
- Keene Loses to SteepleCats for Second Time this Season - Keene Swamp Bats
- Newport Gulls Shut out Bay Sox - New Bedford Bay Sox
- Over 90 NECBL Alum Taken in 2015 MLB Draft - NECBL
- Gulls take 1-0 Pell Bridge Series lead with 7-6 win in thriller at Cardines - Newport Gulls
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