North Fork 8, Westhampton 5

In a seesaw battle on Monday afternoon at Aviator Field, the North Fork Ospreys rallied late to defeat the Westhampton Aviators 8-5.

The Aviators jumped on the board quickly, scoring three runs in the bottom of the first. Drew McGowan (Marist) was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, forcing in the first run of the game. It was followed by back-to-back walks issued to Grant Dalton (Lackawanna) and Jasper Adelman (Lehigh) to force in two more runs, giving Westhampton a 3-0 lead.

North Fork responded in the top of the third inning. Steven Kienzle (Southern New Hampshire) laced a two-run single to right field to cut the deficit to 3-2. Nick Pratt (UMBC) followed with a sacrifice fly to tie the game. The Ospreys nearly added more, but Westhampton third baseman Luke Monico (Marist) made a heads-up play by snagging a sharp line drive and stepping on the bag for an unassisted double play, ending the threat.

The Ospreys took their first lead in the top of the fourth on an RBI double by James Fagnant (Richmond), but Westhampton answered in the bottom half when a passed ball allowed Luke Rizzo (College of Wooster) to scamper home from third, knotting the game at 4-4.

The teams traded runs again in the sixth inning. Pratt gave North Fork a 5-4 lead with an RBI single, but Andrew Grenert (Pima CC) responded for the Aviators with a run-scoring single that brought home Rizzo, tying the game again at 5-5.

The decisive blow came in the top of the seventh. With two outs, Trevor Dosenbach (Richmond) doubled, James Fagnant walked, and a hit by pitch to Anthony Equale (Washington (MO) loaded the bases. Kienzle delivered once more with a go-ahead RBI single. Pratt followed with another RBI single, and Christian Rodriguez (Pace) drew a bases-loaded walk to extend the Ospreys’ lead to 8-5.

In the bottom of the seventh, Pete DeMaio (Dominican), working his third inning of relief for North Fork, faced a jam with the bases loaded and two outs. But he coolly induced a pop-up off the bat of Luke Rizzo, catching it himself to seal the victory for the Ospreys.

Kienzle and Pratt finished the day for North Fork with three RBI each. On the Westhampton side of the boxscore, Grenert was 3-for-4 with an RBI, increasing his average to .571 in three games played.

With the win, North Fork claimed a crucial road victory. The two teams will meet again Tuesday night at Cochran Park in Peconic at 7 PM.

Shelter Island 4, Southampton 0

Andrew Rucci (Wagner), JJ Humenay (St. Lawrence), and Tyler Metcalf (Emerson) worked a combined two-hit shutout as the Shelter Island Bucks beat the Southampton Breakers 4-0 on Monday at Southampton High School.

The Bucks scored two runs in the top of the second on a solo home run by Matt Holmes (Husson) and an RBI double from Tommy Munch (Occidental) to lead 2-0.

Shelter Island doubled their lead in the fifth, getting another two runs from an RBI double by Jack Vallario (Fordham), Vallario would later score on a Southampton error.

Rucci, who pitched the first two innings for Shelter Island, was credited with the win while Metcalf picked up a three-inning save.