The NECBL Daily Rundown - June 12th, 2022

Published on June 13, 2022 under New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL) News Release

Vermont topped Keene in a battle of unbeatens to put a wrap on an action packed Week One across the NECBL!

Ocean State Waves 5 - North Shore Navigators 1

W - Joseph Sheets 1-0 (Columbia): 5.0 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 K

L - Jack DiLauro 0-1 (Holy Cross): 5.0 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K

Fraser Field in Lynn, MA - The Ocean State Waves (3-2) cruised to a 5-1 win over the North Shore Navigators (1-4).

The Waves' pitching staff continued its success into Sunday's matchup with the Navigators. Their pitchers throughout the game allowed three hits, two walks, one run, and struck out 12, and the bullpen did not allow a hit through four innings.

Offensively, Ocean State loaded the bases with no one out in the top of the fourth. Brodey Heaton (Belmont) scored on a wild pitch, then Peter Ciufredda (Lafayette) was driven in on a Drew Holderbach (Marietta) sacrifice fly to make it 2-0.

North Shore provided a threat in the bottom of the fifth inning. The team loaded the bases with one out, then Brady O'Brien (Colby) hit a deep fly ball to right-center field that was caught, and ended up being a sacrifice fly to make it 2-1 in Ocean State's favor.

The Waves responded quickly in the top of the sixth. Ciufredda and Jake Studley (Connecticut) reached on a walk and a single respectively, then advanced the second and third on a balk. Then, Justin Long doubled to drive both of them in. After Long advanced on a groundout, he scored on a wild pitch to make it 5-1. That ended up being the last of the game's scoring.

Ocean State's next game will be at Dodd Stadium against the Mystic Schooners at 12 p.m. tomorrow. North Shore will be at North Adams to face the SteepleCats at 6:30 p.m. tomorrow.

Sanford Mainers 5 - Winnipesaukee Muskrats 4

W - Blake MacMillan 1-0 (Niagra): 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K

L - Jach Thorban 0-1 (Northeastern)

Goodall Park in Sanford, Maine - The Sanford Mainers (1-5) got their first victory in a dramatic walk-off victory over the Winnipesaukee Muskrats (2-3).

The Mainers were resilient, as they came from behind three different times in their win. After being down 2-0 from the top of the first on, Sanford got its offense started with a bang when Jayson Kramer (St. John's) hit a home run to cut Winnipesaukee's lead in half. In the next inning, the Mainers put runners on the corners off back-to-back singles, then tied the game on a safety squeeze bunt that drove Adam Dapkewicz (Georgetown) in.

When they were down 3-2 in the bottom of the ninth, Sanford did not give in. After David Bermudez (Manhattan) walked to lead off the inning, AJ Cook (Elms) pinch ran for him. Then, Kramer laid down a bunt that was fielded by the third baseman and thrown to first base for the out. However, Cook made the turn for third base to force a throw, which ended up getting by the third baseman and allowing Cook to score and tie the game.

Finally, when the Muskrats took the lead in the 10th, it was time for Sanford to answer back for a third time. The Mainers used patience to their advantage by taking three straight walks to tie the game. After that, Grant Knipp (Campbell) lined one into right field to drive in the winning run.

The Mainers will look to get their second win of the year tomorrow at 6 p.m. when they face the Upper Valley Nighthawks. The Muskrats will look to get back today at home against Upper Valley at 6 p.m.

Danbury vs North Adams Doubleheader

Game 1: Danbury Westerners 3 - North Adams Steeplecats 2 (7 innings)

W - Curtis Clark 1-0 (Capital University) 1 IP 1 H 0 ER (2 R) 0 BB 0 K

L - Randy Reyes 0-2 (Central Connecticut State University) 7 IP 5 H 2 ER (3 R) 4 BB 2 K

Joe Wolfe Field in North Adams, MA - The Danbury Westerners (3-2) defeated the North Adams Steeplecats (0-6) in a dramatic 7th inning comeback in the first half of Sunday's doubleheader.

The game remained scoreless until the bottom of the 6th inning when Scott Jones (Butler University) put down a picture-perfect bunt to plate Tyler Epstein (Nova Southeastern University) for the game's first run. The Steeplecats tacked on in the next at-bat as Kyle Hannon (Penn State University) laced a triple down the right field line to score the second run.

Down to their last out, the Westerners rallied to load the bases on two singles and a walk. Jett Lovett (Georgia Tech) roped a three run double into right center field to give Danbury their first lead of the day.

The Steeplecats also loaded the bases in the 7th inning, but the threat was cut short when Noah Jensen (Elon University) induced a soft line drive to the shortstop to end the game. What started as a pitcher's duel between Randy Reyes and Jack Bowery (Marist College) turned into a slugfest in the late innings.

Game 2: Danbury Westerners 8 - North Adams Steeplecats 3

W - Renn Lints 2-1 (Bucknell University) 1.2 IP 4 H 2 ER 1 BB 1 K

L - Kaleb Sophy 0-2 (Shippensburg University) 4.1 IP 6 H 3 ER (4 R) 1 BB 4 K

Joe Wolfe Field in North Adams, MA - The Danbury Westerners (4-2) swept their doubleheader against the North Adams Steeplecats (0-7) on Sunday evening.

Like the first game these two played today, this game was scoreless through the first several innings as Kaleb Sophy and Ryan Higgins (Duke University) found themselves in a pitcher's duel early. North Adams got the scoring started in the fourth with two runs coming from an RBI double from Ryan Galanie (Wofford College) and a sac fly from Will Binder (University at Albany).

After the Steeplecats took a 2-0 lead, the floodgates opened for the Westerners in the fifth. Danbury scored a total of six runs on a Jet Lovett double, Henry Strmecki (University of Dayton) reach on error, a Hank Thomas (Ohio State University) triple, and a Joseph Skarad (Sacred Heart University) RBI walk. From there, the Westerners never looked back as they went on to win 8-3.

Both teams will enjoy a day off tomorrow before returning to play Tuesday. The Westerners will head back to Rogers Park to face the Keene Swamp Bats at 6:30 p.m. The Steeplecats will stay at Joe Wolfe Field and take on the North Shore Navigators at 6:30 p.m.

Bristol Blues 7 - Valley Blue Sox 6

W - Luke Garofalo 1-0 (Central Connecticut St): 1.1 IP, 2 H, 0 ER (1 R), 0 BB, 4 K

L - Chase Hanson 0-1 (Hope International): 1.0 IP, 1 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 1 SO

McKenzie Stadium in Holyoke, MA - The Bristol Blues (4-2) edged the Valley Blue Sox (2-4) after extra innings in a battle of the blues.

In the bottom of the tenth, Bristol led 7-5, but Valley threatened with an RBI single from Charlie Ludwick (Eastern Kentucky), making it a one run game. Blues reliever Luke Garofalo didn't panic though, getting all three outs on strike outs to end the game in a high pressure situation.

The Blues got their two-run advantage in extra innings through a flurry of baserunners, including an RBI from AJ Gaich (Yale).

Bristol got started quickly and scored four runs in the first three innings. An RBI double from Griffin Arnone (Elon), a single by Logan Pfannenbecker (Manhattan College) and two sacrifice flies gave Bristol a 4-0 advantage. Valley finally responded in the third with a Lucas DiLuca (Eastern Illinois) RBI single and a Robert Mattei (Hope International) sacrifice fly.

Bristol and Valley trade runs in the fourth and fifth innings, keeping it a two-run contest. The Blue Sox finally closed the gap and tied the game in the bottom of the eighth thanks to singles from Damaurys Rodriguez (Bryant) and Chase Hanson (Hope International). The score stayed at 5-5 until extra innings, where the Blues closed out the Blue Sox in the bottom half of the inning.

Both Valley and Bristol have a day off today before meeting again tomorrow, this time in Bristol, at 6:30 p.m.

Vermont Mountaineers 8 - Keene Swamp Bats 2

W - Christopher Kahler 1-0 (George Washington): 6.0 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 7 K

L - Caden Leonard 0-1 (Kent St): 3.2 IP, 7 H, 5 ER (8 R), 4 BB, 3 K

Montpelier Recreation Field in Montpelier, VT - A battle of the only two undefeated teams left in the NECBL saw the Vermont Mountaineers (6-0) down the Keene Swamp Bats (4-1) 8-2.

Vermont led 2-0 after three innings, but used a 6-run fourth to propel itself over Keene. RBIs from Evan Fox (Stony Brook), Keagan Calero (Dayton), Gerry Siracusa (Massachusetts Lowell) and Matthew Venuto (Fairfield) gave the Mountaineers a huge 8-0 lead; a lead that they did not look back on.

Mountaineers starter Christopher Kahler was rock solid, keeping the Swamp Bats quiet until the sixth inning. The GW pitcher had a perfect game going through five innings before giving up his two earned runs. Three straight singles by Tony Santa Maria (Rutgers), Dan Covino (Central Connecticut State) and Jackson Ross (Florida Atlantic) served as the only three hits Kahler allowed and plated two runs.

Vermont opened the scoring in the bottom of the first thanks to a Siracusa single. A Venuto single in the bottom of the third made it a 2-0 game before the Mountaineers tacked on in the fourth inning.

Keene returns to action in Danbury (4-2) tomorrow at 6:30 p.m., while the Mountaineers look to stay perfect after two off days when they travel to Ocean State (3-2) on Wednesday at 4:00 p.m.

New England Collegiate Baseball League Stories from June 13, 2022

• Williamson and Gigliotti Claim 2022's First Set of Weekly Accolades - NECBL
• The NECBL Daily Rundown - June 12th, 2022 - 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.