Swamp Bats cruise to fifth straight win, defeat Blue Sox 7-1
July 5, 2014 - New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL)
Keene Swamp Bats News Release
After a 1-7 start to the season, things are starting to come together for the Keene Swamp Bats. The defending NECBL Champions won their fifth straight game on Saturday night, defeating the Valley Blue Sox by a score of 7-1.
The win puts the Swamp Bats over the .500 mark for the first time this season at 11-10, while Valley has now dropped 11 of their last 12 and is 6-14.
Alex Liquori (Kennesaw State) got things started in the home half of the second inning with a solo shot to give Keene a 1-0 lead.
Zach Lauricella (St. John's) followed that up with a solo shot of his own in the bottom of the third, his second of the season and the Swamp Bats had a 2-0 lead.
Keene would add another run in the fourth as Taylor Perez (St. Leo) plated Bret Dennis (St. John's) to open up a 3-0 advantage. Perez had three hits in the game.
The Blue Sox would cut it to 3-1 courtesy of a Garrett Black (Ohio) RBI double in the top half of the seventh, but insurance runs were on the way for the Swamp Bats.
Dominic Severino (Central Conn State) drove home Perez to make it 4-1 through seven innings.
Three more runs would cross home plate for the hosts in the bottom half of the eighth as Brady Sheetz (Hartford) who reached on an error and Perez who was hit by a pitch scored on the two-run double by Jarred Mederos (St. John's). Mederos would score two batters later as Lauricella delivered an RBI double to account for the seventh and final run of the game.
Keene outhit Valley 13-6 in the game.
Alec Bettinger (Virginia) notched the win for the Swamp Bats, going 3.1 innings in relief of starter Connor Jones (Virginia). Bettinger allowed one run on four hits and fanned seven. He is 1-0 on the year.
Jones went 3.2 innings in his first start of the season, working 3.2 scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out a pair.
Zach Strecker (Kentucky) was charged with the loss for the Blue Sox, allowing four runs on 10 hits over the first six innings. The right-hander is now 1-2 on the year.
Keene will next be in action on Tuesday night when they trek north to Montpelier to take on the Vermont Mountaineers at 6:30. David Sosebee (Georgia) will be on the mound for the Swamp Bats.
New England Collegiate Baseball League Stories from July 5, 2014
- Swamp Bats cruise to fifth straight win, defeat Blue Sox 7-1 - Keene Swamp Bats
- Mountaineers lose to New England - Vermont Mountaineers
- Strong Pitching Leads Keene Past Blue Sox, 7-1 - Valley Blue Sox
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