Gulls Fall to Waves 9-5
NEWPORT, R.I. – A seven run seventh inning for the Ocean State Waves proved to be the difference as the Newport Gulls fell 9-5 in the first Pell Bridge Series duel of 2024.
Jackson Teer (Trinity) made his Gulls debut, getting the start on the mound and the righty set the tone early by striking out the side in the first inning. On the opposite side, Mike Caldon (Felician) was Ocean State’s starting pitcher and similarly started off in comfortable fashion, not allowing a run in the first three innings. The fourth inning is when Newport ultimately solved Caldon as Randy Seymour (Michigan State) led off with a single and Brody Szako (Austin Peay) followed that up with a two-run blast for the first home run at Cardines Field this season. Caldon’s night came to an end after the fourth as he allowed four hits with no walks and five strikeouts and Jack Smith (Arkansas) came in out of the bullpen.
In the fifth inning, the Waves answered right back. Zac Zyons (Bryant) was hit by a pitch and then Harrison Wilson (Winthrop) singled to put two runners on base. That was followed by a Tristan Head single that drove in Zyons and Wilson to tie things up. That’s when Teer’s night came to an end, pitching 4 ⅔ innings, conceding five hits while walking three batters and recording nine strikeouts in his first start for the Gulls. Ty Starke (Louisville) entered the game to finish the inning and pitched into the sixth.
In the sixth inning, the Gulls didn’t waste much time retaking the lead. After consecutive walks and a hit by pitch loaded the bases with two outs, Brock Murtha delivered a two-RBI single to give Newport a 4-2 lead. Smith was then replaced by Brooks Ey (Indiana), who ended the inning.
The two-run lead Newport held would quickly vanish in a troubling seventh. Michal Kovala (Georgia Tech) came in for Dean on the rubber and struggled throughout the inning. The trouble started right away as Zac Zyons launched the first pitch over the fence for a solo home run to cut Newport’s lead down to one. Then, multiple walks on either side of a Tristan Head (Virginia) single loaded the bases and a fielder’s choice scored Wilson to tie the game. One batter later, an Aaron Posey (Kennesaw State) single drove in Tristan Head to give the Waves their first lead. That was just the start to the damage as Kovala walked Cole Carbone (Houston) to once again load the bases. Moments later, Greg Pettay (Polk State), the ninth batter of the inning, powered a grand slam to right center field to extend the Ocean State advantage to 9-4.
Nick DiRito (UMass Lowell) and Mitchell Dean (Louisville) pitched an inning each to close out the game for Newport while the Gulls hoped their offense could spark a comeback. The Gulls did manage to get one back in the eighth as Matt Ossenfort (Vanderbilt) scored on a fielder’s choice but that’s all they could manage as Dawson Logie (Merrimack) shut the door in the ninth to secure the win for Ocean State.
The Waves improve to 1-1 with the 9-5 victory while the Gulls are on a two-game skid, dropping to 1-2. Newport returns to action on Sunday at Bristol in a rematch of last year’s championship series. The Gulls come back to Cardines Field on Monday for a meeting with the Mystic Schooners in a Divisional matchup.
