NEWS

Eight teams were in action across five games on Thursday night across the NECBL, with some exciting action all around. Keene and Sanford squared off today for not one, but two matchups, resulting in a split of the games. Bristol won their third straight game to bring them to a tie for first place with Newport. The Sharks held Ocean State to just five hits in their win, while Danbury got back in the win column against North Adams.

 

 

South Division

 

Ocean State Waves vs. Martha’s Vineyard Sharks

Final Score: Martha’s Vineyard 4, Ocean State 1

Oak Bluffs, MA – Powered by a late surge, the Martha’s Vineyard Sharks took down the Ocean State Waves 4-1 on Thursday night.

Ocean State got on the board in the top of the first off a solo shot from Kolton Reynolds (Arkansas), marking his second straight game with a homer. However, it was the only run Sharks pitcher Chayce Kieck (Clemson) would give up, as he shut down the Waves the remainder of the way.

Martha’s Vineyard tied the game on a Will Hampton (Vanderbilt) RBI single in the fifth, and jumped in front in the seventh when Hampton scored on a Blake Binderup (Texas A&M) single. RBI singles in the eighth from Hampton and Brayden Martin (Maryland) sealed the 4-1 victory for the Sharks. 

Kieck was issued the win, while Harrison Lollin (Penn St) took the loss for Ocean State. Hampton finished with four hits on the day, while Evan Appelwick (Miami U) ended 1-1 with four walks. 

The Sharks improve to 17-12, winning their second in a row. They look to build on the momentum as they host the Sanford Mainers tomorrow at 7:05 pm, while Ocean State drops to 13-15 and takes on the Valley Blue Sox tomorrow afternoon at 3:00 pm.

Box Score

Valley Blue Sox vs Bristol Blues

Final Score: Blue Sox 2, Blues 6

Holyoke, MA – The Bristol Blues defeated the Valley Blue Sox on Thursday night at Mackenzie Field by a score of 6-2. The Blues rode a 6-run second inning for their 19th win of the season, which deadlocks them with Newport for first place in the South Division.

The Blues got on the board first when their offense scored all six of their runs in the top of the second inning, and it happened all with two outs. Mikael Petersen (Brown), Shanley Wall (East Stroudsburg), and Scott Gell (Stony Brook) all walked to load the bases for Alex Irizarry, who was hit by a pitch to drive in a run. Nate Lincoln (Marist College) and Luke Nomura (Fairfield) both went station-to-station, with both of them drawing a walk. Jack Hopko (Rhode Island) finished off the scoring with a bases-clearing double that made it 6-0.

In the bottom of the inning, Valley responded when Hayden Perry (Samford) singled to score Andrew Loikits (Wofford), but runs were hard to come by for both teams outside the second inning. The Blue Sox scored again thanks to Sebastian Mexico (Louisiana Tech) who belted an RBI single to make it 6-2, but that’s how the game would wrap up.

Vincent Spizzoucco (Portal - Central Connecticut St) got the win for Bristol thanks to his five innings of two-run ball (one earned). Christopher Batuyios (St John's) got the loss for Valley as he allowed six runs in less than two innings of work. The Blues will battle it out with the Newport Gulls Friday for sole possession of first place in the South Division, while the Blue Sox will face the Ocean State Waves Friday afternoon.

Box Score

 

North Adams SteepleCats vs. Danbury Westerners

Final Score: Danbury 8, North Adams 6

Danbury, CT-  The Westerners hosted the SteepleCats for a chaotic game of baseball on Thursday night. In the top of the first, Cuyler Baxter (Wake Forest) quickly put North Adams on top, hitting a solo home run to make it 1-0 SteepleCats. Danbury responded right back in the bottom of the first, when Jack Lutte (Denison) hit an RBI double to tie the game at one apiece. 

In the top fourth, Max Palinski (Wabash Valley) gave the lead right back to North Adams with an RBI single to make the score 2-1 SteepleCats. In the bottom half of the fourth, Brice Estep (Coastal Carolina) grounded in Peter Link (Sacred Heart) to tie the game at 2-2. Aidan Paradine (Siena) followed up with an RBI single to add on and make it a 3-2 Danbury lead.

In the top of the sixth, North Adams would fire back when Cuyler Baxter (Wake Forest) scored on an error by the catcher, tying the game at 3-3. JT Thompson followed by (Rutgers-New Brunswick) scoring on a wild pitch, trading the lead with Danbury to put the SteepleCats back on top at 4-3. Nelphie Lopez (Stentson) would only add to the damage by scoring on an error by catcher to make the score 5-3 North Adams In the bottom half of that inning, Michael Ianuzzo (Maryland-College Park) drove in two runs on a fielder’s choice, instantly tying the game at 5-5 for the Westerners. Garrett Larson (Yale) hit a sac fly, scoring Ianuzzo, and instantly winning back the lead for Danbury at 6-5. 

The madness wouldn’t stop, as in the top of the seventh, Cuyler Baxter (Wake Forest) scored on an error by the first baseman, tying the game back up at 6-6 for North Adams. Danbury wouldn’t let their home crowd down, as in the bottom of the inning, Peter Link (Sacred Heart) scored on a wild pitch, earning Danbury the lead again at 7-6. Will Cook (Sacred Heart) would follow when he scored on an error by the first baseman, giving Danbury the eventual 8-6 final score. 

Danbury is back in action on Friday, July 11th at 6 pm as they head to Hartford, VT to take on the Upper Valley Nighthawks. Meanwhile, North Adams takes a day off before hosting the Blue Sox at 6:30 pm on Saturday, July 12th. 

You can view the box score here

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The New England Collegiate Baseball League is a wooden bat college summer league that fields teams in all six New England states. Partially funded by Major League Baseball, the New England League started play in 1994 and has sent over 230 alumni to the Major Leagues with nearly 30 alumni taken in the first round of the MLB Draft. For continuing coverage of the NECBL, visit NECBL.com and follow the league on Twitter, Instagram and on Facebook.