Waves clinch playoffs with dramatic walk-off win
MARTHA’S VINEYARD, MA - On Saturday, the Ocean State Waves officially clinched the eighth and final wild card seed in the 2023 NECBL playoffs with a double header sweep of the Martha’s Vineyard Sharks on the final day of the regular season.
How it happened:
Game one - Ocean State 7-6 Martha’s Vineyard
Martha’s Vineyard jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the opening three innings of game one, starting with Ty Acker’s sacrifice fly to bring home Gio Colasante at the top of the second inning. The Sharks would tack on two more when Caden Shapiro nailed a two-RBI single an inning later to bring home Ryan McCoy and Carsten Sabathia, who advanced on a pair of walks to make it 3-0 Sharks.
The Waves responded in an emphatic way in the fourth inning, one which saw seven of the eight batters who saw the plate reach base, four of whom scored. The inning was highlighted by four straight hits on no outs, led by a pair of home runs from Alex Ramirez and Drew Holderbach. Ramirez’s shot over the right field fence was his second in three games, leading off a streak of four straight runs as Khyree Miller and Chrisitan Ficca also came around to score on a pair of singles to make it a 4-3 game.
Not to be outdone, the Sharks responded with a pair of home runs of their own just an inning later. After Sabathia led things off with a single, Scott Seeker launched a two-run shot to bring Sabathia home, before Max Kaufer added another home run to retake the 6-4 lead for the Sharks. The Waves pulled one back at the bottom of the frame when Holderbach’s sacrifice fly to center field brought home Mershon to set up a one-run contest going into the final inning.
Down a run with two outs and two strikes on the board, Christian Ficca found himself a pitch away from striking out in an out that would’ve seen the Waves eliminated from playoff contention on the final day of the season. Instead, Ficca nailed a two-out single as the Waves rallied to load the bases, before Jackson Phinney’s RBI single brought home pinch runner T.J. Mckenzie to knot the game at six.
The Waves weren’t done yet. Still with two outs on the board at the bottom of the seventh, Greg Pettay was the hero of the night with his sixth RBI of the season, one that brought home Matthew Graveline to give the Waves the walkoff win, saving their season and keeping their playoff hopes alive.
Game two - Ocean State 9-7 Martha’s Vineyard
Fresh off of the momentum of a walkoff win, the Waves came out swinging early in game two. David Mershon led things off with his second home run of the year, leaving the yard on the first pitch of the game as the Waves took early command of the game at the top of the first. They would go on to add two more runs when Ficca and Graveline recorded a pair of RBI’s to bring home Miller and Jack Brooks, who initially advanced on a pair of walks to make it 3-0 Waves at the top of the first.
However, the Sharks once again refused to go down without a fight, putting up two runs at the bottom of the frame when Sabathia (RBI double) and Seeker (sacrifice fly to left field) batted in Diamant (double) and McCoy (HBP) at the top of the order to make it a one-run ballgame.
As the two teams continued to exchange early blows, the Waves once again re-established a four-run lead at the top of the second. It started when Greg Pettay advanced on a walk before making his way around to third on a pair of wild pitches, before Mckenzie also walked and stole his way to second. Mershon would then bring Pettay home with a sacrifice fly, while Brooks nailed an RBI single of his own to send Mckenzie home safely. Eventually, the Waves would finish off the three-run inning when Drew Holderbach batted Brooks home with his second single of the game to give the Waves a 6-2 lead.
Once again though, the Waves could not defend their lead as the Sharks put up a four-run inning to knot the game at six at the bottom of the second. The runs came from a string of four straight RBI singles and six total hits, with McCoy, Sabathia, Diamant and Acker all scoring as a result. In total, all eight batters who saw the plate for the Sharks at the bottom of the second were able to reach base safely.
From here, both teams would begin to establish themselves on defense as the sides were kept scoreless until the sixth inning, where the Waves eventually scored the go-ahead run. It happened when Holderbach and Phinney knocked a pair of doubles that saw Holderbach score. The Waves eventually found the insurance run an inning later, when Holderbach’s fourth hit and second RBI of the night brought home Mershon for his second run to make it 8-6 Waves.
The Sharks pulled one back when Scott Seeker nailed his second home run of the doubleheader in the sixth inning, but it was too little too late as Pettay would secure the win with his second RBI of the day to bring home Graveline at the top of the seventh for a 9-7 final score, completing the doubleheader sweep of the Sharks.
Up Next:
With the sweep, the Waves officially clinched the eighth playoff spot, and will begin their 2023 playoff run with a three-game series against the Newport Gulls next week, starting on Monday. First pitch in game one from Cardines Field is set for 6:35 p.m. on ESPN+.
