SwampBats Win in 11
July 30, 2018 - New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL)
Keene Swamp Bats News Release
KEENE, NH - Lorenzo Hampton's walk-off single with two outs in the bottom half of the 11th inning lifted the Keene SwampBats (22-18) to a 9-8 victory over the Ocean State Waves (24-18) on Monday night at Alumni Field in Keene.
In the bottom of the 11th, Brandon Smith (Dayton) reached with a one-out single, went to second on a walk and scored on the single from Hampton (Florida International) to snap the SwampBats' four-game losing streak.
The run was charged to RHP Michael Gutierrez (Felician-2.2 IP, 2 H, R, ER, BB, K) who was dealt the loss for Ocean State and drops to 0-1.
RHP Justin Willis (Vanderbilt-3.0 IP, 6 H, R, ER, BB, 7 K) earned the win for Keene to improve to 4-2.
Ocean State had tied the game at eight with a solo shot from Grant English (Winthrop) in the top of the ninth.
Earlier in the game, Smith broke the NECBL's single-season RBI record with a two-run single in the third. The infielder leads the circuit with 46 RBI, surpassing the previous record of 45 that was set by Rob Kelly of Vermont in 2012.
The Waves grabbed a 4-0 lead with a pair of two-run homers in the second from Casey Dana (Seton Hall) and Sonny Ulliana (Rhode Island).
Ocean State extended the lead to 5-0 with a run in the third as Cullen Smith (East Tennessee St.) led off with a double, went to third on a groundout and scored on Garrett Hodges' (Kennesaw St.) sac fly.
Keene starter Erik Kaiser (Vanderbilt) allowed the five runs on five hits while walking three and fanning five over 4.0 IP in a no-decision.
The SwampBats got three back in the fourth as Smith's two-run single was the big blow in the inning and Jacob Koos (Stetson) also came through with an RBI single.
All three runs were charged to Waves starter Graham Seitz (Virginia Tech) who gave up the three runs on two hits to go along with a walk and a strikeout in 2.1 IP.
Ryan Ward (Bryant) hit a solo shot in the fifth to stretch the Ocean State lead to 6-3.
The SwampBats took the lead for the time being with a five-run sixth inning that made it an 8-6 game. The inning included a solo shot from Cordell Dunn Jr. (Grayson College), RBI doubles from Alex Griffith (Francis Marion) and Mitchell Golden (Georgia Southern) and RBI singles from Koos and Rudy Aguilar (St. John's).
Ward's RBI single in the top of the seventh brought Ocean State back within a run at 8-7. The run was charged to Keene RHP Jeff Praml (Southern New Hampshire-3.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 4 K).
Five different SwampBats had multi-hit games: Golden (2-6, 2 2B, RBI), Griffith (3-5, 2B, RBI, R), Hampton (2-6, RBI, R), Koos (2-6, 2 RBI, 2 R) and Smith (3-6, 2 RBI, R).
RHP Heibert Romero (Southeastern-1.0 IP, 2 K) tossed a scoreless inning in relief.
The SwampBats will resume a suspended game with the North Adams SteepleCats on Tuesday afternoon at Alumni Field. The game is scoreless with two outs in the top of the fourth inning. First pitch of the resumption is set for 2:00 p.m. and two seven-inning games will follow.
New England Collegiate Baseball League Stories from July 30, 2018
- Moose Clutch Up to Start Final Week - Sanford Mainers
- Nighthawks Drop Home Contest to Sanford - Upper Valley Nighthawks
- SwampBats Win in 11 - Keene Swamp Bats
- Late Homer Prevents New Bedford from Claiming Battle of the Sox as Valley Wins 5-4 - New Bedford Bay Sox
- Ward, Thompson Claim Week 8 NECBL Accolades - NECBL
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
