Swamp Bats Walk Off in Home Finale
July 30, 2016 - New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL)
Keene Swamp Bats News Release
KEENE - In Keene's opener back on June 11th, North Canton, OH native and Swamp Bats second baseman Dom Iero (Sr., Kent St.) hit an RBI single to centerfield to score catcher Tommy LaCongo (Sr., St. Bonaventure U) from second base, giving the Swamp Bats a 5-4 walk-off victory over the North Adams Steeplecats in 11 innings.
On Saturday night, in the bottom of the 9th, with two outs in the home finale, and right fielder Jamal Wade (Jr., U of Maryland) at 3rd base, Iero came through once more with a walk-off RBI single to left field to lift the Swamp Bats (18-24) over the Sanford Mainers (26-16) 9-8 in front of 1,114 fans at Alumni Field.
The Swamp Bats finished their home schedule with an 11-10 record. They also win the season series with the Mainers 3-2, and now have a 2-4 record against teams in 1st place.
The Swamp Bats have suddenly won two out of their last three, and are now only half of a game out of the 4th and last playoff spot in the NECBL Northern Division. Keene is still in sole possession of last place in the Northern Division, but Winnipesaukee, Upper Valley and Vermont are now all tied for 4th at 18-23.
The Keene offense was hot right out of the gate on Saturday. The Swamp Bats took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the 1st off an RBI single by first baseman Patrick Sullivan (So., U of Georgia).
The Swamp Bats are now 15-5 on the season when scoring the game's first run.
Keene really blew things open in the bottom of the 2nd when left fielder Ryan Costello (So., Central Connecticut St.) blasted a three-run homer to right field to put the Swamp Bats up 5-0.
It was Costello's third home run of the season and the second in the last four days; both of them three-run shots.
Sanford had no answer in the top of the 3rd, as Swamp Bats starting pitcher Michael LaBeau (Sr., Castleton St.) put the Mainers down in order.
In his second start of the season, the right-hander from Bellows Falls, Vermont was outstanding, matching his season high with six innings of work. He surrendered only two hits and two walks while also tying his season-high with six strikeouts.
The Swamp Bats got one run in the 3rd off an RBI single by LaCongo, and one more in the 4th on a groundout sacrifice by DH Aubrey McCarty (Jr., Florida A&M). It was 7-0 Keene at the end of four.
The Mainers finally got on the board in the top of the 7th, and did so in a big way. The right-handed Dylan Sbordone (Jr., SNHU) was the first reliever Keene trotted out in place of LaBeau, and Stanford trounced on him early. Third baseman Nelson Mompierre (So., Miami Dade CC-Kendall) led off with a single, and Sbordone walked his next two; second baseman Daniel Wilson (So., UNC-Asheville) and first baseman Sam Stauble (Sr., U of Southern Maine).
Sbordone was replaced on the hill by another right-hander, Mike Crimi (Sr., Keene State Col.). Sbordone finished with no outs recorded, and was charged with one hit, three earned runs and two walks through three batters faced.
With the bases loaded and nobody out, Sanford's first run of the game scored off an RBI groundout sacrifice by right-fielder Michael Young (UMass-Lowell). Sanford scored again off an RBI single by catcher Kyle Heath (Jr., U of Southern Maine). Left fielder Jordan Powell (Sr., U of Rhode Island) reached first on a 6-4 fielder's choice RBI to make it a 7-3 ballgame. That was followed by an RBI triple off of centerfielder Zach Jancarski (Jr., U of Maryland). Jancarski scored when DH Shaine Hughes (Jr., Monmouth U) reached first on a fielding error by Iero. It was 7-5 Swamp Bats with two outs.
The Swamp Bats committed three errors, while the Mainers committed four.
After Crimi walked shortstop Todd Czniege (Sr., Villanova), he was replaced on the mound by the lefty Carmen Giampetruzzi (Jr., Boston College).
Through 0.2 innings, Crimi was charged with four runs (one earned), two hits and one walk.
When Mompierre came back up to bat, he reached on another fielding error by Iero. The error and a passed ball by LaCongo allowed to more runs in the 7th, which tied the game at 7-7. Giampetruzzi struck out Stauble to finally end the top of the 7th; a frame which stretched to 12 at-bats.
In the entire game, eight Mainers reached base, while seven notched a hit and scored a run.
Sanford took the lead in the top of the 9th when Stauble hit an RBI single to centerfield to make it 8-7 Mainers. It would have been the biggest lead Keene has blown this season.
Swamp Bats centerfielder and Keene native Lucas Luopa (Sr., Franklin Pierce U) led off the bottom of the 9th, and reached first on a fielding error by Czniege at short. An RBI double by Wade two at-bats later tied the game 8-8.
LaCongo struck out in the next at-bat, but Wade reached third on a wild pitch by Sanford reliever Dalton Curtis (Sr., Lipscomb U).
Curtis took the loss for the Mainers while searching for his fifth save of the season. The righty from Marysville, TN surrendered two hits and two unearned runs while striking out one of the five batters he faced.
With Wade at 3rd, Iero came in and lined a 2-2 pitch into the leftfield gap, which easily allowed Wade to trot the 90 feet home. Iero was greeted at the end of the game between 1st and 2nd by a dog pile that came storming out of the Keene dugout.
Iero has driven in the winning run three times this season, and has scored the winning run once.
Swamp Bats reliever David Drouin (Sr., U of Hartford) improved his record to 1-2 on the mound this season. The righty from Boscawen, NH faced six batters in the top of the 9th, giving up two hits and one earned run. He also tallied a strikeout and a walk.
The Swamp Bats hit the road Sunday for the first of two final road trips in the regular season. Keene will face the Upper Valley Nighthawks (18-23) at the Maxfield Sports Complex in Hartford, VT. First pitch is set for 5 p.m. The game can be heard on the NECBL Broadcast Network, FM 104.1 and AM 1220 ESPN Keene.
New England Collegiate Baseball League Stories from July 30, 2016
- Mystic Split Doubleheader - Mystic Schooners
- Swamp Bats Walk Off in Home Finale - Keene Swamp Bats
- Mainers Clinch Northern Division Title - Sanford Mainers
- North Adams Tops Vermont 4-3 - Vermont Mountaineers
- New Bedford Shutouts Newport - New Bedford Bay Sox
- SteepleCats Fall in 13 Innings - North Adams SteepleCats
- Moose Comeback, Walk-Off in 13 to Beat North Adams - Sanford Mainers
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