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FL New England Knockouts

Knockouts Blast Four Home Runs, Sweep Twin Bill Versus Miners

August 23, 2024 - Frontier League (FL)
New England Knockouts News Release


BROCKTON, MA.- Luis Atiles went 3 for 5 and three RBIs to give New England a 11-3 game one victory over Sussex County. Michael Quigley then pitched five shutout innings in game two to give New England a 7-0 victory over Sussex County on Friday night at Campanelli Stadium. The Knockouts complete the twin bill sweep and boost their record to 34-52, while the Miners dropped to 30-58.

Prior to the game, the skipper, Jerod Edmondson, discussed the unusual circumstances of resuming a suspended game from this past Sunday against the Miners. "Yeah, it's definitely weird, especially when you are in our place and they are going to be the home team. I'd rather finish then lose the game, and I think for us, still having them on the schedule makes sense to finish this one, and then we play seven [innings] after. I am looking forward to it and we are winning so hopefully we can keep it going."

GAME ONE

New England starting pitcher Joe Kemlage performed impressively, securing the victory and improving his season record to 3-4. Kemlage showcased his skill by pitching 4.2 innings, during which he allowed seven hits and three runs, all of which were earned. Additionally, he walked two batters and struck out two. On the flip side, Jimmy Boyce had a tough outing, taking the loss and dropping to 2-5 for the season. Boyce pitched 1.1 innings, allowing six hits and five runs, three of which were earned. He also walked a batter and struck out a batter during the game.

Austin White drew a walk to lead off the second game of the doubleheader, at Sussex County, before the game was suspended. However, with one out, he was picked off by Sussex County starting pitcher Boyce who threw to first base to Oraj Anu as White was tagged out on a very intense rundown for the second out. Jack-Thomas Wold and John Cristino both hit singles, and Jake Boone delivered an RBI single on a 3-2 pitch, giving the Knockouts an early 1-0 lead. With two outs, both John Cristino and Jake Boone were running on the pitch when Tommy Kretzler singled to left field, further extending New England's lead. Noah Lucier then struck out swinging on a curveball, leaving two runners stranded on base.

In the second game at Sussex County Nick Hassan, who didn't start in the first game of the doubleheader, made an impact as he singled to right field. This put New England in a strong position with runners on the corners and one out. White stole his fifty-second base, and as the infield closed in with two runners in scoring position, Atiles delivered a base hit that brought home two more runs for New England, giving the Knockouts a 4-0 lead and forcing Miners starting pitcher Boyce out of the game. Wold then swung at a first-pitch fastball for a base hit, putting Knockouts in a commanding position with runners on the corners. Cristino followed with a bloop base hit to center field, extending the lead to 5-0. However, despite the strong start, the next two batters were retired, leaving Knockouts with a 5-0 lead heading into the bottom of the second.

The tarp then was placed on the field to cover it during a twenty-minute rain delay, which occurred and then the game was called off due to rain. On Friday, August 23, the game resumed at New England's Campanelli Stadium after a five-day hiatus. The Knockouts and the Miners kicked off a four-game series.

After the game resumed play with one out, in Brockton, Alec Sayre doubled for his seventh double of the season and with two outs came around to score on Evan Giodano RBI base hit that made it a 5-1 ballgame. Kyle Richards flew out to Kretzler for the third out of the game.

In the third inning, with one out, Hassan struck out, but he reached first base on a wild pitch. J.R. DiSarcina then hit a single to center field, putting New England in a promising position with runners on the corners. DiSarcina seized the opportunity to steal second base, marking his ninth stolen base of the year. With two runners in scoring position, Atiles came through with an RBI base hit to center, bringing the score to 6-1. Wold added another run to the board with an RBI single to right field that scored DiSarcina. However, Wold's attempt to stretch a single into a double resulted in an out at second base, ending the third inning.

After the game Jerod Edmondson spoke about the offense scoring seven runs throughout the first three innings. "It just changes everything, and you feel more comfortable. Pitchers can just attack the hitters and not worry about the one run. It was awesome."

Cory Acton hit a single with one out in the third, and Hunter D'Amato walked. Acton and D'Amato then successfully executed a double steal, putting themselves in scoring position at second and third base. Oraj Anu walked to load the bases, and Gavin Stupienski smashed a single to center field, bringing home a run and making it a 7-2 ballgame. Sayre managed to score another run when he reached on a fielder's choice, and the inning ended when Sleight flew out to White.

In the top of the fourth, Boone doubled for his nineteen double of the season. He also stole third for his twenty-second double of the season. Kretzler walked which put runners in the corners with one out when Lucier reached on a fielder's choice that added one more run on the board for New England as they had 8-3 lead. Lucier stole second for his eleventh stolen base of the season. Hassan reached first on an error by Acton and DiSarcina grounded out to Acton to end the inning.

In the bottom half of the inning, Richards and Gomez each hit singles to right field. However, with two outs, D'Amato was unable to make contact and struck out looking to end the inning. This left the Miners with two runners stranded on the basepath.

After the Miners swiftly secured the first two outs in the fifth, Sayre managed to reach first base due to an error by the third baseman, Atiles. Sleight was then hit by a pitch, allowing Sussex County to have two runners on base with two outs. At this crucial moment, Mike McKenna stepped in for relief, and Giordano proceeded to ground out to DiSarcina at shortstop, effectively ending the inning.

Cristino started off the sixth inning sending the ball soaring over the centerfield fence for a solo home run. The ball left his bat at an impressive 105 miles per hour, traveling a remarkable distance of 420 feet. This home run marked his nineteenth of the season. Following this, Kretzler hit a solid single to center field, setting the stage for even more action. With two outs, Hassan capitalized on an error by the shortstop Acton, reaching first base and putting two New England runners in scoring position. The stage was set for DiSarcina, who delivered a triple that brought in two more runs for New England, extending their lead to 11-3.

D'Amato singled to shortstop, and Anu grounded out to third for a double play. Stupienski doubled to right field for his ninth double of the season, and Sleight grounded out to Boone to end the game.

In game one for New England, Wold, Cristino, and Atiles each had three hits, while Boone, Kretzler, and DiSarcina each had two hits, and Hassan contributed with one hit. For Sussex County, Sayre achieved a three-hit game, Stupienski had a two-hit game, and five different Miners players recorded a hit.

After the game the skipper talked about the trio of Wold, Cristino and Atiles combined for 9 for 15 and six RBIs. "Yeah I mean obviously when you are getting production out of those guys, you are getting a lot of success. It's good to see the guys come out and be ready to go on that game, not let them leak back into it, and just take care of business."

GAME TWO

New England's starting pitcher Quigley delivered a winning performance on the mound, pitching five dominant shutout innings. He only allowed three hits while walking three and striking out four, all in just 84 pitches.

After the game, Quigley spoke about his performance on the mound. "For me, I feel like definitely talking to some of the other guys and my coaches about the different ways to prepare helped...I just tried to gain as much knowledge as I can about being a starter pitcher, and working with Liam O'Sullivan and Coach [Dan] Sausville. We really got a good routine going. I got in the mound four times this week...at the end of the day that's our home office. I got to be confident up there, and I think the preparation definitely helped out..."

On the other side, Sussex County's Tyler Thornton had a tough outing, pitching 4.1 innings and allowing eight hits and seven runs, with six of those runs being earned. Additionally, he walked four and struck out four in the game, in just 104 pitches.

In the middle of the first inning, during the Knockouts' turn at bat, White hit a single between second and first base, then Keagan Calero also hit a single and advanced to second due to an error by the right fielder, Sayre. Wold walked, loading the bases. Cristino was hit by a pitch, forcing home a run and making it a 1-0 game with one out in the inning. Tommy Kritzler then reached on a fielder's choice, bringing home the second run of the game with two runners on. Both runners advanced on a wild pitch. Finally, Garcia struck out swinging for the third out.

Stupenski and Sayre both walked in the second, igniting the Miners' offense with runners on first and second and

nobody out. However, Sleight's promising hit was caught by the centerfielder White, but with that, the Miners had runners on the corners. Giordano's tense at-bat resulted in a fielder's choice, loading the bases as Sussex County Ebel stepped up to the plate with an opportunity to score, but his hit was caught by Boone, ending the inning with the bases loaded.

Calero walked, and Wold delivered a powerful swing, sending the ball soaring over the right-field wall for a spectacular two-run homer, marking his tenth of the season. The ball traveled a distance of 370 feet with an impressive exit velocity of 103 miles per hour. Following Wold's big hit, Cristino stepped up to the plate and achieved a back-to-back home run, blasting his twentieth homer of the season. This home run tied him for the lead league in home runs in the frontier league. The ball traveled an incredible 451 feet towards center field with an exit velocity of 106 miles per hour. Unfortunately, Boone's walk was short-lived as he was swiftly picked off for the first out. Kretzler and Garcia then stepped up, but both were unable to connect with the ball, striking out swinging to conclude the inning.

Quigley surrendered his first hit of the game in the fourth. Anu smacked a base hit between second and first, and Stupenski followed with a base hit to right field, putting two Miners players on base. Despite this challenge, Quigley refocused and successfully retired the next three hitters.

Wold led off the fifth when he delivered a solo home run, sending the ball sailing over the opposite field for a 378-foot home run, with an impressive 96 miles per hour exit velocity off the bat. This electrifying play extended the Knockouts' lead to 6-0, marking Wold's eleventh homer of the season and his second home run of the night.

After the game Wold spoke about his two-homer night. "It was one of those days where the ball find the barrel, and all I can do is get out there and execute my approach and hope for the best. Today the best thing happened, and I just gotta thank God for that, my support system, and obviously my coaching staff that has been working with me in the past couple of weeks.

The action continued as Boone reached base after a hit to the shortstop Acton. Kretzler, and Garcia followed up with consecutive singles. Atiles then walked, loading the bases. However, Billy Parsons took to the mound as a relief pitcher, managing to retire the next two Knockouts batters, leaving the bases loaded.

For New England, the duo White and Wold had a two-hit game, and five different Knockouts recorded a hit. For Sussex County, four different Miners recorded a hit in game two.

After the game the skipper spoke about the feeling of shaking hands twice after the game. "Oh yes, it's the best when you go on in this doubleheader seven innings short games. You have to make sure that you get the lead and hold on to it, and we were able to do that tonight. I just felt that we were in control and played our game tonight, and if we do that, we have a chance to win every game..."

The Knockouts return to Campanelli Stadium tomorrow night, hosting the Sussex County Miners in game three of the four-game weekend. Tickets for the remainder of the season can be found at https://tickets.knockoutsbaseball.com/.

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