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FL New England Knockouts

New England Offense Explodes in Mid-Series Bill, Tie Set with Miners

August 17, 2024 - Frontier League (FL)
New England Knockouts News Release


AUGUSTA, NJ- Tommy Kretzler went 4 for 4 and two extra base hits to give New England a 4-2 victory over Sussex County on Saturday night at Skylands Stadium. The Knockouts improved to 30-50, while the Miners dropped to 29-53.

Before the game, the New England Skipper praised the outstanding performance of Anderson Comas, Ben Seiler, and Matthew Maloney. The trio combined to pitch 5.1 innings of shutout baseball in relief last night against the Miners. "Yeah, I mean you get behind early and having those guys come in, slam the door, shut them down, and give us a chance to scratch our way back. When you are down a lot early, and you can't get zeros when you are pitching well it makes it a lot harder to get back in the game. For those guys to keep it where it's at and give us a chance we were right there until the end so yeah kudos to them."

Austin White proudly spoke about his performance in last night's game, during which he achieved three hits. White also extended his on-base streak to twenty-seven straight games. "Yeah, I am glad to be locked in. I was slumping a little bit, even though some people would say I wasn't, but me being me I do. I just felt comfortable. I love playing here at Sussex, so it just showed my approach is back to normal where it is supposed to be and I am just glad I am helping my team win."

For New England, starting pitcher Michael Quigley had a no-decision performance. He pitched for 2.2 innings, allowing three hits and two earned runs while walking three batters. Matt Cronin, also from New England, secured his fourth win of the season, bringing his record to 4-7. Cronin pitched for three innings, allowing two hits and walking a batter. In the ninth, Reeves Martin entered the game and shut the door to earn his eighth save of the season.

For Sussex County, Charlie Neuweiler's record dropped to 2-4 for the season. He pitched for seven innings, allowing ten hits and four earned runs while walking two batters and striking out five.

Jack-Thomas Wold hit a base hit and then advanced to scoring position on a wild pitch with two outs in the first. However, the inning came to an end as John Cristino struck out swinging.

The Miners struck first in the bottom half of the first when Cory Acton drew a walk. Hunter D'Amato hit into a double play, but Oraj Anu singled to left field and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Alec Sayre then brought Anu home with a single to center field, putting Sussex County ahead 1-0.

Jake Boone got the second inning off to a strong start for New England with a leadoff base hit and stole second for his twenty-first stolen base of the season. Then, on a 1-2 count, Kretzler hit a sharply struck ball down the third base line that found its way to left field for an RBI double. This was Kretzler's eleventh double of the season, and it tied the game at one run apiece.

D'Amato was granted first base after a pitch clock violation committed by Quigley in the third inning. D'Amato then successfully stole second base, marking his first stolen base of the season. Following this, Anu was hit by a pitch, allowing the Miners to have two runners on base with nobody out. Sayre then grounded out to Quigley, advancing both runners, and Evan Sleight followed with a fly out to White, giving Sussex County a 2-1 lead with two outs in the inning. Babriel Maciel hit another single, placing runners on the corners. Gehrig Ebel was then hit by a pitch, loading the bases and leading to the removal of Knockouts starting pitcher Michael Quigley from the game. Matt Cronin came in relief and quickly retired Kyle Richards for the final out of the third inning.

The Miners got off to a strong start with the first two batters reaching on base in the bottom half of the fourth. D'Amato then executed a bunt towards Atiles on the third base side, advancing the runners to second and third. Anu struck out after being unable to hold up on a check swing, prompting the home plate umpire, Alex Lawrie, to appeal to the third base umpire, Reid Hoover, for the second out. Finally, Sayre hit a fly ball to White, ending the inning.

J.R. DiSarcina hit a single to left field in the top of the fifth and then stole second base, marking his fifth stolen base of the season. Following that, White reached base on an infield hit, putting runners on the corners for Luis Atiles. White then stole his fiftieth base of the season, which was the most in the league at that point. This forced Sussex County to bring their infield in. Atiles grounded out for the second out, but Jack-Thomas Wold picked him up and delivered a two-run single, giving New England a 3-2 lead.

In the top of the sixth inning, Boone started things off with a solid single that glanced off Neuweiler's glove. Kretzler stepped up next and smashed an RBI double, allowing Boone to speed all the way from first base to score.

After the game Kretzler expressed what he was looking for in the second and in the sixth inning for his two extra base hits. "I'm just looking for the same thing in each at bat. I am looking for a fastball and hit it right up the middle."

Jalen Garcia then hit a fly ball to center field, caught by Sayre, advancing Kretzler to third base. Noah Lucier managed to draw a walk, placing runners in the corner. However, the momentum was halted as DiSarcina grounded into a 4-6-3 double play, ending the top of the sixth inning.

White achieved his second hit of the game in the seventh and successfully stole second base, marking his fifty-first stolen base of the season. Following this, Atiles hit a line drive to the shortstop Acton, who had initially started the game at second base. Acton promptly threw the ball to Evan Giordano, resulting in a double play as White was tagged out at second for the second out. Additionally, Ebel made a spectacular sliding catch at first to prevent Wold from earning extra bases and swiftly threw the ball to Neuweiler, who was covering the base, securing the third out.

The Knockouts had a great opportunity to increase their lead. The first two batters got on base, and then Kretzler hit a single to center field, loading the bases. With the infield playing in, Garcia struck out swinging, and then Lucier grounded into a double play. Despite having the bases loaded with nobody out, the Knockouts were unable to take advantage of the scoring opportunity.

The Knockouts were looking for insurance runs in the ninth when they had two players on base with only one out. Unfortunately, Wold and Crisitno were both retired, as they left two runners stranded on base.

In the ninth inning, with a runner on first base and only one out, the game came to a dramatic conclusion. Sayre smashed a line drive right at Atiles, who quickly fielded the ball at third base. With lightning-fast reflexes, Atiles fired the ball to first base, completing a stunning double play. Anu, the baserunner, was just too far from the bag to get back in time. Atiles' throw to first sealed the double play and ended the game in spectacular fashion.

For the Knockouts, Kretzler stood out for New England with an impressive four hits, while Boone contributed three hits. Wold and White each had strong performances, and DiSarcina also added one hit to the team's victory.

After the game, New England skipper Jerod Edmondson spoke about Kretzler and Boone combining for seven hits in the victory. "It's huge, obviously Jack [Thomas Wold] has been good for us and John [Cristino] has been unbelievable all year, but those guys aren't going to get it done every night. When you have five- and six-hole guys getting a bunch of hits, driving runs, and picking those guys up, that's what makes the lineup really deep and tough to pitch to. You get a good game like it was tonight, a little bit back and forth, tight game, you need those guys to step up and get big hits."

On the other side, despite the loss, six different players from Sussex County's team, the Miners, each recorded a hit.

The Knockouts return to Sussex County tomorrow for a Sunday double-header with the Miners. They return to Campanelli Stadium on Tuesday, hosting the New York Boulders in a midweek series. Tickets for the remainder of the season can be found at https://tickets.knockoutsbaseball.com/.

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