Schooners hold Waves to fifth loss in six games, 5-3
NORWICH, CT - After exploding for their biggest win of the season on Tuesday, the Ocean State Waves were kept quiet by the Mystic Schooners just one day later in a 5-3 loss at Dodd Stadium.
The loss was Ocean State’s third of the season against their Coastal Division Rivals, who leveled the head-to-head series between the teams at 3-3 with just one meeting remaining on the year.
After a quick opening three innings saw only three runners reach base and nine straight retired by Wyatt Lunsford-Shenkman, the Waves were the first to threaten the basepath when a pair of hits and walks loaded the bases at the top of the fourth. However, the Waves were unable to take advantage when T.J. Mckenzie flew out to third base, leaving all three runners stranded as Alec Rodriguez got out of the jam in his Schooners debut in relief on the mound. In total, the Waves left nine runners stranded on the night to Mystic’s three.
The Schooners would make the Waves pay for their missed opportunity just an inning later, putting up their first four hits of the game as Jack Goodman came home on a double play to give the Schooners a 1-0 lead, before Anthony DePino nailed an RBI single to bring home Goodman to double the advantage.
The Waves responded almost instantly at the top of the fifth, when Greg Pettay and David Mershon advanced on a pair of leadoff walks before coming home off of a Jack Brooks RBI single to knot the game at two.
It was not long before the hosts retook the lead, thanks to a Michael Handal RBI double that saw Landon Moran come home safely. Mystic would go on to put up a pair of insurance runs when Anthony DePino became the third player to hit a home run at Dodd Stadium in 2023, bringing home Handal in the bottom of the sixth to make it a 5-3 ballgame. The Waves went on to pull one back an inning later when Drew Holdebach knocked in Khyree Miller, but it was too little too late as the Waves fell to their fifth loss in six games, 5-3 to the Schooners.
On the mound, Michael Quigly took the loss in relief for the Waves, allowing three hits and three runs in one inning of work. For the Schooners, Brandon Smith recorded his third win in relief, striking out four while allowing only two hits and one run in three innings out of the pen. Jay Allmer recorded his ninth save of the year after retiring three straight batters to end the game.
With the loss, the Waves dropped to 15-15-1 on the year, while the Schooners increased the distance between the two sides in the standings with their sixth straight win, moving to 18-10-0. Up next, the Waves return home to face the Martha’s Vineyard Sharks on Thursday for the first of three meetings this week. First pitch from Old Mountain Field is set for 6:30 p.m. on the NECBL Broadcast Network.
