Middle-Inning Troubles Plague Mainers in Loss to Vermont
June 9, 2024 - New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL)
Sanford Mainers News Release
Sanford Mainers' Colton Trisch on the mound
(, Credit: Madison Giltner Photography)
MONTPELIER, VT - One night after the Sanford Mainers won their 12th consecutive divisional game, the Vermont Mountaineers pulled ahead in the middle innings to snap the streak by way of a 7-2 score on Sunday night.
The Mountaineers put the first run on the board in the bottom of the second inning against Colton Trisch (George Washington). JoJo Sanchez (Erskine) took the spot of Nathan Waugh (Georgia Tech), who had reached on a leadoff walk, at first base on a fielder's choice.
Sanchez stole second base, the third of six stolen bases on the night for Vermont, before coming around to score on a two-out double by Casey Bishop (Towson).
Sanford had chances in the third and fourth to tie the game, but a diving catch by Cam Santerre (Stony Brook) ended the threat in the third and a fielder's choice stranded three runners on in the fourth. However, in the fifth, a two-out single by Devan Bade (Binghamton) jump-started a rally.
Jack Toomey (Holy Cross) found his way to first base, which was left vacant after Bade stole second base, on a walk. One at-bat later, C.J. Willis (Quinnipiac), who was coming off a night in which he hit for the cycle and reached base five times, drove Bade in with a single to right field.
Willis' single proved to be the eighth time in nine plate appearances that the utility player reached base. The RBI attached to the single was the Massachusetts native's fifth RBI in the past three games.
After Toomey and Willis became the sixth and seventh Mainers left on base in the contest, the Mountaineers took their lead right back in the bottom of the fifth inning.
Trisch recorded two quick outs, both popouts, but then yielded singles to Santerre, Josiah Ragsdale (Iona) and Johnny Knox (Nichols). Knox's single drove in Vermont's second run of the contest and knocked Trisch from the game.
Beau Brailey (Alabama) inherited the two-out, two-on situation out of the bullpen. Brailey, who spent his 2023 high school season recovering from Tommy John surgery and did not appear in his freshman year with the Crimson Tide, hit the first batter he saw to load the bases.
The Georgia native threw a wild pitch on the first pitch of the next at-bat to D.M. Jefferson (Notre Dame). That wild pitch allowed Ragsdale to score and put the home team ahead 3-1 in the bottom of the fifth.
Brailey went back out for the seventh inning after watching his offense strand a two-out single by Matt Travisano (UMass). Brailey allowed a single to Waugh before an error by Travisano allowed Waugh to get to third and Sanchez to reach second base.
Bishop, who already had an RBI double, hit a ball destined for left field after the error. Jared Davis (Virginia Tech) stretched out to make sure the ball did not leave the infield or cause a run to score, although the bases did become loaded.
With the bases loaded, Santerre, who robbed the Mainers of a run or two on his third inning diving-catch, drove in Waugh and Sanchez with a single to right field. Santerre's single advanced Bishop to third, which allowed Bishop to score on a wild pitch by Josh Kopetski (Rhode Island).
Trailing 6-1, Davis singled to open the seventh inning before advancing to second on a wild pitch. After Bade found his way on via a base on balls, Davis stole third base with Toomey at the plate. Toomey grounded a ball to shortstop that scored Davis as Sanford cut the deficit to four.
Kopetski worked a 1-2-3 bottom of the seventh inning but then struggled when he returned for the eighth. Two singles from Sanchez and Beau Root (UConn) and a walk from Bishop loaded the bases. One more walk to Santerre drove in a run to make the score 7-2.
T.J. Curley (Mount St. Mary's) replaced Kopetski after the walk and managed three strikeouts to avoid further issues in the inning. The Sanford native's three strikeouts added to his three from one night prior in Keene to make it six strikeouts over three scoreless innings of work.
Toomey worked another walk in the top of the ninth inning, but Sanford's night ended on a flyout by Willis.
The Mainers now look to avoid their second two-game skid of the season as they travel to face the Martha's Vineyard Sharks on Monday.
Images from this story
 Sanford Mainers' Colton Trisch on the mound (Madison Giltner Photography) |
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New England Collegiate Baseball League Stories from June 9, 2024
- Middle-Inning Troubles Plague Mainers in Loss to Vermont - Sanford Mainers
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