Gulls Win 5th Straight, Shut out Bay Sox 8-0
July 30, 2014 - New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL)
Newport Gulls News Release
NEWPORT, R.I. - Coming off a stretch of four games in two days, the Newport Gulls looked to continue their hot streak at home against the New Bedford Bay Sox on Wednesday. Powered by stellar pitching and timely offensive contributions, the Gulls shut out the Bay Sox, 8-0, in front of a sold-out crowd of 2,982 fans at Cardines Field.
Brett Hanewich, who was making his fifth start of the summer, pitched exceptionally against the Bay Sox lineup on Wednesday. Hanewich went seven innings, allowing no runs on two hits while striking out a season-high ten batters. Hanewich struck out the side in both the first and fifth innings, and also recorded a stretch in he struck out five consecutive batters in the fifth and sixth innings.
The Gulls were the first to jump on the scoreboard, scoring three times in the bottom of the third. Reed Gamache led off the inning with his second triple of the season, eventually scoring the game's first run on an RBI single by Shea Donlin. After a wall-ball double by Tommy Edman, the Gulls obtained another RBI on a groundout to second by Ben Roberts. With Edman at third, Blaise Salter drove home his 35th run of the season courtesy of an RBI single to left. Despite a double by Tyler Green and an intentional walk to Tanner Donnels that loaded the bases, Ryan Tufts grounded into a double play to end the inning. The Gulls ended the third with a 3-0 advantage.
In the bottom of the fourth, the Gulls continued their offensive onslaught against Bay Sox starter Reed Mason. Loading the bases with two outs, Salter drove home three runs on a bases-clearing double to left. Spearheaded by Salter's 4 RBIs on the game, the Gulls took a commanding 6-0 lead over the Bay Sox after four innings.
One inning later, the Gulls continued to produce runs against the Bay Sox pitching staff. With a leadoff single by Donnels, Tufts drove him in with an RBI double, giving the Gulls a 7-0 lead. After Mason allowed seven runs, Bay Sox manager Rick Miller turned to the bullpen, bringing in lefty reliever Jeremy Perron. Even though Perron was able to get P.J. Jones to ground out to second, Gamache drove in his first run of the game on an RBI double to the gap in right-center. Even though Perron was able to retire the next two batters, the Gulls still managed to take an advantageous 8-0 lead into the sixth inning.
After seven solid innings from Hanewich, the Gulls turned to southpaw Layne Bruner for his first relief outing since July 7. Bruner pitched effectively, striking out two batters as he retired the side in the top of the eighth. Despite walking Lorenzo Papa in the ninth, Bruner retired the side once again, picking off Papa at third to end the game, giving the Gulls their fifth consecutive victory with a 8-0 margin.
With the win, the Gulls improved their record to 23-16, winning their fifth consecutive contest. The Gulls currently stand in second place, leading the Mystic Schooners and the Ocean State Waves by a half of a game with three games left to play. The Gulls also secured the season series against the Bay Sox, taking the series by a 4-2 margin.
Tomorrow, the Gulls return to Cardines Field to host the Laconia Muskrats to makeup a rained out contest from July 18. Jack Patterson (3-3, 3.38 ERA) will make his seventh start of the season, facing the Muskrats for the first time in his NECBL career. Nick Lima, Patrick Cavanagh, and Tim Scott will cover the action on the NECBL Broadcast Network, with first pitch slated for 6:35 pm.
New England Collegiate Baseball League Stories from July 30, 2014
- Swamp Bats Can't Hold Lead, Fall to Vermont, 7-6 - Keene Swamp Bats
- Gulls Win 5th Straight, Shut out Bay Sox 8-0 - Newport Gulls
- Mountaineers Nip Keene 7-6 - Vermont Mountaineers
- Gull Alum Taylor Makes MLB Debut - Newport Gulls
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