KEENE, NH - On Independence Eve at Alumni Field, the Keene SwampBats hosted the Sanford Mainers for the second time in five days, and played a close game against their division rival that saw the Bats play in extra innings for the first time this summer. The Mainers put up six runs off of three homers in the tenth, taking the win 9-4. 

LHP Alex Walsh (Jacksonville) made his fourth start of 2025, and reached a new season high in strikeouts, fanning eight Mainers in four innings of work. The southpaw allowed four hits, two of which came in the first. Keene’s bats got going in the home half of the first, as CF Jack Herring (ECU) belted the second pitch he saw out the other way to left to give the Bats a 1-0 lead. 

3B Nick Romano would come around to score on a wild pitch, and the Bats led by a run after the first. They would tack on another in the second, as SS Andrew Bell (Duke) scored on an error by Sanford SS Ryder Kirtley, making the game 3-1. Things quieted down after that, and Sanford got one back on a solo home run from 3B Brendan Sencaj, the first of an eventual three homer night for him.

SwampBats right handers John Malone (Samford) and Jake Hooker (Xavier) advanced the game to the ninth, combining for six strikeouts but allowing two runs for Sanford to tie the game at three. Ben Dean (Duke) shut things down in the top of the ninth, but a lightning delay forced the game into a stoppage with one away in the bottom of the ninth for 50 minutes. The 5,740 fans in attendance enjoyed Keene’s fireworks show, but the SwampBats on the field saw their momentum dissipate, and it all culminated in a six run top of the tenth for Sanford, in which they hit three homers.

Keene moves to 17-7 (11-1 at home) and will face a team with an identical record, the Newport Gulls, at Cardines Field on Friday, July 4th. Sanford improves to 9-13 and will host Ocean State on July 4th.

First pitch at Newport is slated for 6:35 PM, with the SwampBats probable pitcher being RHP Kyle Peters (UConn). The game will be streamed live on ESPN+.