By: Alec Henden

ORLEANS, Mass. – The parallels between the home-and-home matchup between the Orleans Firebirds and the Harwich Mariners were numerous. Ominous rain clouds hung overhead after 'play ball' was stated, and eventually the sun peaked through to provide a great atmosphere for baseball.

The Birds also came out on top in both matchups to remain hot and complete a perfect week where they went undefeated and found their mojo as a unit.

Sunday evening’s game the Firebirds broke out the bats and received another great outing from their starter in route to a 7-2 victory over the Mariners at Eldredge Park.

“We had a talk at the 11-game point, a quarter way through the season, as an offense about putting up better at-bats,” assistant coach Jamie Quinn said. “We’re forcing some action as an offense and it’s a pleasure to see all the work the offense has been putting in and buying into our plan.”

Southpaw starter Jared Shuster (Wake Forest) went five innings, allowing two earned runs and striking out six hitters. Shuster effectively used his breaking ball throughout the outing, including when trailing in the count and spinning it for strikes when needed.

The Mariners (7-9) got on the board first on a two-run opposite field homer off the bat of Cory Acton (Florida). It was the only runs that Shuster allowed on his way to picking up the victory.

Orleans (9-4-2) has made a habit of falling behind in games and clawing its way back the entire week. Raymond Gil (Miami) got the Firebirds on the board with his team-leading third home run. Then, Zach Kokoska (Kansas State) went opposite field against his college teammate Casey Seymour to give the Birds the lead.

“It doesn’t get much better than that. It gives me some bragging rights going into K-State,” Kokoska said. “I couldn’t have picked a better guy to hit it off of, he’s one of my best friends. I was happy I did it.”

Orleans received a great performance from leadoff man Jordan Lala (Miami). Lala went 3-for-5 and scored a run after struggling to begin the season. But Lala has refined his approach at the plate and has found more positive results.

“Anytime the leadoff guy is on in an inning you have a good chance to score,” Lala said. “I don’t think I’ve done a good job as of late, but I’ve been showing some flashes here and there, and hopefully I can keep putting together complete games like I did today.”

Left-handed reliever Isaac Esqueda (USC) made his Cape League debut in dominant fashion by tossing 2 2/3 no-hit innings with three strikeouts. Esqueda continued the trend of the bullpen, locking down late leads.

After the Firebirds took the lead, they tacked on three runs off of Mariners’ reliever Cam Baumann (Iowa), who was unable to settle in. The bottom three hitters in Orleans' order each got on base and scored to put the game away in the home half of the seventh.

Orleans now finds themselves in sole possession of first place in the East Division and the first Cape team to reach 20 points. Following a season where the team missed the postseason, the early run of success has the team feeling good heading into July.

“It sounds awesome right now but we’re not done yet,” Kokoska said. “We’re going to keep on getting some wins for Orleans and hopefully our momentum keeps us rolling.”

The Firebirds now head back on the road Monday evening for a makeup game against the Falmouth Commodores. It’s the first Monday matchup since the season opener for the Birds.

Short Hops:

-There was a birthday celebration postgame for Lala as he turned 20 years old on Sunday. Lala excelled at the plate and made a tremendous running catch in the sixth inning to the deepest part of Eldredge Park.

-Sunday night’s win marks the first time Orleans has won three straight games since August 2017.

-Orleans will send Noah Skirrow (Liberty) to the mound for Monday night’s meeting with the Commodores. Skirrow has been impressive in both his previous starts, allowing only one run in seven innings of work.