Gulls Win Home Opener in Fog
June 8, 2021 - New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL)
Newport Gulls News Release
NEWPORT, R.I. - The Newport Gulls defeated the Valley Blue Sox 8-4 in their home-opener Monday evening in what was the first NECBL game at Cardines Field in 672 days. Foggy conditions factored heavily in the contest all night and ultimately led to the game being called in the bottom of the sixth inning.
Newport backstop Peter Serruto led the charge on offense, lacing two base hits including a ringing two-out two-run double that caromed off one of the banners hung high up on the leftfield fence. The Rutgers product also threw out a baserunner.
Gulls starting pitcher Jimmy Kingsbury earned the win, hurling five innings with six punchouts. The Villanova sidewinder worked around a substantial amount of traffic on the basepaths, giving up only three runs despite surrendering six hits, two free passes and a hit-by pitch.
The Gulls fell behind early in the ballgame, starting with Kingsbury drilling Blue Sox leadoff man Jack Housinger with his first pitch of the outing. Kingsbury then allowed a single to Travis Holt before Blue Sox left fielder Brian Hart laced a single of his own into left field.
Newport left fielder Grayson Moore, making his Gulls debut, charged the ball and uncorked a wild throw that ended up at the backstop, allowing the run to score and both trail runners to advance to second and third respectively. The error proved to be costly, as Kingsbury dealt a wild pitch to the next Blue Sox batter, allowing another run to cross and put the Gulls in a 2-0 deficit. Kingsbury bore down and struck out the next three Valley batters to end the frame and strand Hart at third.
Kingsbury found himself with more trouble brewing in the top of the second after allowing the first three batters to reach base. Tasked with facing the top of the order with no outs and the bases loaded, Kingsbury induced a soft chopper off the bat of Housinger that was fielded smoothly by Gulls second baseman Joe Fortin who took the out at first as another Blue Sox scored to make it a 3-0 Gulls deficit. With two runners still in scoring position, Kingsbury once again walked the tightrope, coaxing a popout from Holt to short left field and striking out Hart to end the inning.
After struggling through the first two frames, Kingsbury allowed just three baserunners, one of which was erased on a fine throw by Serruto from behind the dish.
The Gulls offense largely remained dormant until the fourth inning. With Fortin reaching on a fielder's choice and two outs in the inning, first baseman Cal Parrillo stroked a single into left field and centerfielder Conor Kiely worked a walk to load the bases. Serruto then blasted a double off the fence in left-center scoring two and bringing the score to 3-2. A speeding Kiely attempted to score all the way from first and was thrown out at the plate by Blue Sox shortstop Matt LaPlante after running through the stop sign from the Gulls third base coach.
The offensive surge from Newport continued into the fifth inning, as two walks and a single loaded the bases with no outs for designated hitter Matt Wood, coming off an impressive season at Penn State. Wood showcased his prowess at the plate with a shot down the first baseline for a two-base hit that brought in the tying and go-ahead runs. Wood's laser forced Valley starter John MacCauley out of the game, but the pitching change did not put a damper on the scorching Newport offense. Third baseman Christopher Pittaro immediately drove in another run with a grounder to second and walks from Fortin and Parrillo loaded the bases once again. Kiely made up for his baserunning miscue by hustling out a potential double-play ball to drive in the sixth Gulls run. Up once again with a runner in scoring position and two outs, Serruto delivered for the second time with a frozen rope to center field to give Newport a 7-3 lead.
The Blue Sox pulled to within three in the top of the sixth inning as right fielder Garrett Shultz slapped a single into right field off of Gulls southpaw Kellan Tulio pitching in relief. However, the Gulls struck right back in the bottom of the frame, as Pittaro hit an RBI single into left-center field that drove in Moore for his second run of the game. Neither Blue Sox outfielder was able to pick up the ball in the air with the thick fog rolling in, and after voicing their displeasure with the conditions, both teams agreed to cut the game short.
The Gulls (2-0) play their next game Wednesday, June 9, against the Keene Swamp Bats at Cardines Field at 6:35 PM, gates open at 5 PM for Red Sox Recovery & Rebirth Night.
For more information about the Newport Gulls, visit facebook.com/newportgulls, follow the Gulls on Twitter @NewportGulls or visit www.newportgulls.com.
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New England Collegiate Baseball League Stories from June 8, 2021
- Gulls Win Home Opener in Fog - Newport Gulls
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