The NECBL Daily Rundown - 7/14/22 - Mainers, Sharks Each Mount Five-Run Comebacks

July 15, 2022 - New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL) News Release

Upper Valley Nighthawks 4 - Vermont Mountaineers 3

W - Aaron Munson 4-0 (Angelo St): 4.0 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 K

L - Brendan Patterman 1-1 (Stony Brook): 1.2 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 0 K

S - Matthew McShane 1 (St Josephs): 2.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER (1 R), 0 BB, 3 K

Maxfield Sports Complex, Hartford, V.T. - The Upper Valley Nighthawks (15-17) handed the Vermont Mountaineers (25-5) their fifth loss of the season.

An RBI single from Nicholas Wang (Boston College) and a double by Tyler Sorrentino (Charleston) plated three Nighthawks in the seventh. Upper Valley entered the inning down 2-1 but left it two runs up. Five of the Nighthawks' six hits on the night came in the three-run bottom of the seventh.

Vermont jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the fourth inning following a two-run single by Shane Lussier (Wofford). Upper Valley responded in the bottom of the inning to close the gap to a run. The score stayed the same until the Nighthawks scored three in the seventh.

A Mark Trotta (William & Mary) single for the Mountaineers in the ninth brought them within one. With runners threatening on the corners, Upper Valley's Matthew McShane (St Josephs) struck out Adam Retzbach (Lehigh) for the third out to shut the door. The Nighthawks bullpen went five innings without allowing an earned run. Aaron Munson (Angelo St) and McShane combined to strike out eight Mountaineers.

Upper Valley hosts Ocean State (15-17) today at 6:00 p.m. while Vermont looks to get back on track at home against Bristol (23-8) at 6:30 p.m.

Sanford Mainers 9 - Keene SwampBats 6

W - Brady Afthim 5-0 (Connecticut): 3.0 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 7 K

L - Parker Murphy 1-3 (Jacksonville): 0.0 IP, 1 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 0 K

Alumni Field, Keene, N.H. - The Sanford Mainers (14-16) downed the Keene SwampBats (12-19) thanks to a four-run eighth inning.

Sanford took a 9-6 lead after an eventful eighth inning. Three walks and RBIs from Joey Rezek (East Carolina) and Quinn McDaniel (Maine) gave the Mainers four runs in the inning. The away team knocked Parker Murphy (Jacksonville) out of the game before he could record an out.

The Mainers scored their nine runs in two separate innings. A five-run third, highlighted by a Quinn McDaniel three-run home run, drew Sanford level after Keene scored five in the first two innings. McDaniel ended the night with two hits and led the game with five RBIs.

The SwampBats jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead in the first thanks to a Tyler McKenzie (Vanderbilt) three-run bomb. Keene scored two more in the bottom of the second after a Garrett Rice (Missouri) solo shot and a Lucas Costello (Wake Forest) RBI. The Mainers scored five in the third to tie it up before the SwampBats took the lead back in the sixth. Another Garrett Rice bomb, his second solo home run of the game, put Keene up 6-5. Sanford scored the last four runs of the contest in the top of the eighth, taking a 9-6 lead.

Sanford reliever Brady Afthim (Connecticut) added to his scoreless streak, pitching three innings and earning the win. The right-hander has pitched twenty innings this season without giving up a run. Afthim struck out seven SwampBats, pushing his season total to thirty-nine, which ranks second in the NECBL.

Sanford travels to Mystic today to face the Schooners (18-12) at 4:30 p.m. Keene heads to North Adams to play the SteepleCats (7-23) at 6:30 p.m.

Danbury Westerners 2 - Valley Blue Sox 0

W - Matt Rados 1-0 (Franklin Pierce): 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K

L - Terry Murray 0-2 (Rhode Island College): 2.0 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 0 K

S - Billy Oldham (Eastern Connecticut State): 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K

Rogers Park in Danbury, CT - The Danbury Westerners (14-18) defeated the Valley Blue Sox (15-17) in a tight game.

After six and a half innings of scoreless baseball, Danbury's Jett Lovett (Georgia Tech) was up with a man on base. Lovett hit a no-doubt home run over the right field wall that put the Westerners up 2-0.

It turned out to be all the Westerners needed. Their starting pitcher Zach Grace (Wake Forest) threw six scoreless innings with nine strikeouts. Matt Rados, Vincent Bianchi (St. John's), and Billy Oldham combined for three scoreless innings out of the bullpen to secure the victory for Danbury.

The Westerners will be facing off against the Newport Gulls on the road today at 6:35 p.m. The Blue Sox will stay on the road for a 6:35 p.m. game against the North Shore Navigators today.

Bristol Blues 8 - North Adams SteepleCats 1

W - Colin McVeigh 3-0 (Fairfield): 6.0 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 3 K

L - Nate Beal 1-3 (Pennsylvania): 3.0 IP, 5 H, 5 ER, 3 BB, 2 K

Muzzy Field in Bristol, CT - The Bristol Blues (23-8) defeated the North Adams SteepleCats (7-23) in a quality team victory.

The scoring started in the bottom of the second inning with a Derek Tenney (Hartford) RBI single. Tenney scored later in the inning on an error. In the next inning, Griffin Arnone (Elon) led off with a single. After he stole second base, Jay Harry (Penn State) drove him in on a single. Ben Huber (Connecticut) walked, then Joseph Rios (Central Connecticut State) hit an RBI single. Huber scored on a wild pitch, then Tenney hit another RBI single to make it 6-0. Two innings later, Tenney hit his third RBI single of the game. In the bottom of the eighth, there was no one on, but it did not stop Tenney from getting another RBI, as he hit a home run to make it a 4-for-4 day.

The SteepleCats' lone run came on a Cedric Rose (UMass Lowell) solo home run.

The Blues will be on the road today to face the only team in the league with a better record than them in the Vermont Mountaineers at 6:30 p.m. The SteepleCats will be hosting the Keene SwampBats at 6:30 p.m. today.

Martha's Vineyard Sharks 12 - Ocean State Waves 7

W - Alejandro Torres 1-0 (Miami): 2.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K

L - Parker Bard 2-2 (Dayton): 0.0 IP, 2 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 0 K

Old Mountain Field in Kingston, R.I. - The Martha's Vineyard Sharks (17-13) defeated the Ocean State Waves (15-17) in a high-scoring affair.

Entering the seventh inning, the Sharks were down 7-2. They brought that deficit down quickly on a Cabot Maher (Villanova) solo home run to lead the inning off. Thomas Bramley followed that up with a walk, then Derek Berg (U.S. Military Academy) reached on an error. Luke Masiuk (Northeastern) walked to load the bases, then Cavan Brady (Wheaton) drove Bramley in on a single to make it 7-4. Dorian Gonzalez (Miami) hit an sacrifice fly, and later in the inning, Michael Snyder (Washington) drove in a run after being hit by a pitch.

JD Mccracken (Tennessee) and Alejandro Torres provided scoreless innings for the Sharks in the seventh and eighth innings. When it came time for the ninth inning, Gonzalez led the inning off by reaching on an error. Logan Chambers (Tennessee) and Marcus Franco (Nova Southeastern) walked to load the bases. Snyder hit a game-tying RBI single, then Maher reached on an error that allowed the go-ahead run to score. To add insurance, Bramley hit a grand slam to make it a five-run game.

Vineyard's other offensive highlights included a Derek Berg solo home run and a Michael Snyder sacrifice fly. On Ocean State's side, Peter Ciufredda (Lafayette) hit a 2-run home run in the third inning. Chase Meggers ( hit a sacrifice fly and Khyree Miller hit an RBI single before Daniel Baruch hit a 3-run home run in the fifth inning.

The Sharks will be at home today for a 7:05 p.m. matchup against the Winnipesaukee Muskrats. The Waves will go on the road to play the Upper Valley Nighthawks at 6:00 p.m. today.

New England Collegiate Baseball League Stories from July 15, 2022

• Vermont Loses in Battle with Blues - Vermont Mountaineers
• The NECBL Daily Rundown - 7/14/22 - Mainers, Sharks Each Mount Five-Run Comebacks - 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.