Mainers Can't Catch Moose in Montpelier
June 12, 2019 - New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL)
Sanford Mainers News Release
MONTPELIER - The Vermont Mountaineers got their bats going in the game's middle third as their offensive explosion doomed the Moose to a 10-3 loss.
Immediately following their last game against the Danbury Westerners where they left 14 runners on base, Vermont left nothing to chance today, capitalizing on almost all of their scoring chances.
Through the first three innings, the Mainers matched the Mountaineers step for step. Vermont looked destined to open the scoring after their first two batters reached base against Moose starter Luke Dziados (Cicero, N.Y./Binghamton). However, he turned up the heat and dialed up two straight strikeouts, keeping the game's first run off the scoreboard. That would come with two outs the very next inning when Robbie Armitage (Falmouth, Maine/Marist College) drilled a home run over the left field wall.
With a little bit of luck, the Mountaineers got that run back right away. With a runner on third and two outs, a wild pitch allowed Matt McDermott to scamper home and tie the game.
Both team's offenses went dormant until the fourth inning when the Mountaineers exorcised their hitting demons and kicked their offense into gear. Dziados racked up his seventh punch out after surrendering a leadoff bunt single, but things quickly spiraled out of control from there. Three consecutive singles gave the hosts a 2-1 lead and set the stage for Austin Gauthier, who, with the bases loaded, ripped a triple to center field, pushing the lead out three runs further.
Gavin Bates (Auburn, Maine/Dayton) came out of the bullpen to get the last two outs, but a sacrifice fly tacked on one more run for Vermont, establishing a 6-1 lead.
Despite his best efforts, Bates could not keep the Mountaineer offense at bay in the fifth as three more runs crossed the plate. A Brian Goulard home run capped off an inning which saw them extend their lead to eight runs.
The Mainers got one back in the sixth when a Ryan Turenne (Lynn, Mass./Maine) drove Drew DeMartino (Pittsfield, Mass./Hartford) home with a sacrifice fly. DeMartino had led off the inning with a line drive single to center, extending his early season hit streak to four games.
The Mountaineers matched the Moose with a run of their own when they came back up to bat. Despite two incredible diving plays at shortstop by Sterling Hayes (San Diego, Calif./Vanderbilt), the hosts hit double digits on an RBI groundout off Nolan Collins(Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif./Bates College). Hayes showed off his range, making a sliding stop to his left and a diving snag to his right in consecutive plays.
Collins would pitch two more stellar innings in relief, allowing just one hit and striking out two as he bounced back from a rough outing in his second NECBL appearance.
Despite being down, the Mainer bats kept fighting and continued to battle against the Mountaineer bullpen. Turenne smacked a deep home run to right field with two outs and two strikes on him in the top of the eighth, making the final score a bit more respectable at 10-3.
The loss drops the Moose to 2-3, good for fifth place in the Northern Division. They have a day off tomorrow but will hit the road again on Thursday for their second matchup of the season against the Valley Blue Sox. You can catch all the action at 6:30 p.m. on 104.3 FM/1220 AM "The Legends" or on the NECBL Broadcast Network. In the meantime, head over to sanfordmainers.com and follow the team on social media to stay in the loop about all things Mainers.
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New England Collegiate Baseball League Stories from June 12, 2019
- Bay Sox Fall to Keene 5-3, and Slide to 0-5 Start - New Bedford Bay Sox
- Nighthawks Avenge Early Season Loss to Mountaineers - Vermont Mountaineers
- Mainers Can't Catch Moose in Montpelier - Sanford Mainers
- Gulls Surge Past Waves 12-7 - Newport Gulls
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