Photo Credit: Sophia Wallick

Southampton 7, Westhampton 5

The Southampton Breakers clinched the final playoff spot in the HCBL on the last day of the regular season with a 7-5 win over the Westhampton Aviators.

Cole Maucere (New Haven) hit a two-run home run for the Breakers in the top of the first inning that gave Southampton a 2-0 lead.

Westhampton responded by scoring three runs in the bottom of the first on the result of a Southampton error and two-run double by Harrison Blueweiss (NYU) to lead 3-2.

The Breakers got back the lead in the following inning when Joseph Frazzetta (New Haven) hit a two-run double putting Southampton ahead 4-3.

The Aviators would then tie the score in the bottom of the third as Luca PiPia (Ithaca) hit an RBI double tying the game at 4-4.

Southampton would take the lead for good in the top of the fourth on a two-run single from Collin Quintano (Villanova) making the score 6-4 in favor of the Breakers. Southampton got an insurance run in the seventh on a Ty Gilligan (Dominican) single making the score 7-4.

Aden Soroca (Hamilton) would come in to pitch the bottom of the seventh with two men on base with nobody out and the tying run at the plate. Soroca would get a 4-6-3 double play and get Willie Landman (St. Lawrence) to pop up to second base to send the Breakers to the HCBL postseason for the fifth consecutive season.

Joseph Wozny (RIT) who pitched three innings of relief for Southampton earned the victory.

Sag Harbor 6, Shelter Island 4

The Sag Harbor Whalers clinched the #1 seed in the HCBL playoffs with a 6-4 win on the road at Shelter Island on Tuesday.

Sag Harbor got out to an early 2-0 lead in the top of the first getting runs on a sacrifice fly from Tucker Genovesi (St. Bonaventure) and a solo home run from Lucas Pierce (Rhode Island College).

The Bucks would get their first run of the game in the bottom of the first from an RBI fielder’s choice by Ty Bourne (Emerson) that cut the score to 2-1.

The Bucks would tie the score in the bottom of the second at 2-2 on an RBI double hit by Charlie Knighton (Washington (MD).

Both teams would get a run in the third inning as Sag Harbor scored theirs on an RBI ground-rule double from Declan Ryan (St. Anselm) while Shelter Island got their run on a fielder’s choice hit by Josh Endo (Southwestern).

Sag Harbor would take the lead in the top of the fifth as they scored three runs in the inning to take a 6-3 lead which they’d hold going into the bottom of the seventh.

The Bucks would load the bases with one out as the Whalers called upon Anthony France (Southwestern) to get a one-out save. France would get Bourne to ground into a fielder’s choice resulting in a run scoring putting the Bucks within two.

France would get the next batter Endo to fly out to left field giving the Whalers the win and the top seed in the HCBL playoffs. Garrett Bolwell (Rhode Island College) who pitched the fourth inning earned the win for Sag Harbor.

Jack Gold (Pomona-Pitzer) hit 3-for-4 and finished the day’s action as the second triple-crown winner in HCBL history. Gold hit .450 with nine home runs and 34 RBI in the 2024 season and is the first triple-crown winner in the HCBL since Peter Greskoff (Brown) for the Riverhead Tomcats in 2009.

The top-seeded Whalers will play the fourth-seeded Southampton Breakers in Game 1 of the HCBL Semifinals starting on Thursday at 4 PM in Sag Harbor at Mashashimuet Park.

North Fork 2, South Shore 2 (8 Innings)

The North Fork Ospreys and South Shore Clippers finished in a 2-2 eight-inning tie at Cochran Park in Peconic on Tuesday.

The Ospreys scored a run in the top of the second on a South Shore error that brought in Leighton Helfrick (UC Davis) to score.

South Shore would then get two runs in the bottom of the second on an RBI single by Brogan Olson (New Haven) and a bases loaded walk to Trey McGowan (SUNY Oswego).

The score remained at 2-1 Clippers until the top of the sixth when Anthony Equale (Washington (MO) hit a solo home run tying the game at 2-2.

North Fork and South Shore pitching would not allow a run for the remainder of the game as both teams' regular seasons ended in a 2-2 tie.

South Shore finishes the regular season at 16-18-2 in fifth place two points short of Southampton for the last playoff spot. North Fork finishes the season at 20-15-1 in second place one point back of Sag Harbor.

The second-seeded Ospreys will play the third-seeded Shelter Island Bucks in Game 1 of the HCBL Semifinals at Cochran Park on Thursday at 7 PM.