Mystic Schooners vs Danbury Westerners (Game One)

Final Score/7: Mystic 11, Danbury 5 

Danbury, CT – The Danbury Westerners hosted the Mystic Schooners for a cross-state matchup in game one of the doubleheader on July 5th. Davis Johnson (Notre Dame) wasted no time in the top of the first, hitting an RBI single to quickly make the score 1-0 Mystic. In the bottom of the inning, Brice Estep (Coastal Carolina) walked in the tying run to make the score 1-1 and put Danbury on the board. Gavin Donohue (Sacred Heart) followed up by advancing to first on a fielder’s choice, driving in another run to make it 2-1 Danbury after an inning of play. 

Davis Johnson (Notre Dame) would begin his stellar performance in the top of the third inning when he hit a game-tying RBI single to make the score 2-2. Eric Cha (Northeastern) advanced to first on error, driving in the go-ahead run for a 3-2 Mystic lead. The top of the fourth was a big inning for Mystic, as Jason Jelic (Xavier) led things off with a solo home run to make it 4-2. Davis Johnson (Notre Dame) drove in a run on an error by the shortstop, which was followed by Nick Locurto (Virginia Tech) hitting an RBI double to make the score 6-2 Mystic. The bottom of the fourth saw Danbury attempt a comeback, when Michael Stellrecht (Binghamton) drove in a run on an error by the shortstop, and Garrett Larson (Yale) scored on a balk to cut the lead down to 6-4. 

The top of the fifth was even bigger than the fourth for Mystic. Anthony Belisario (UConn) got it started when he scored on a wild pitch, and Scott Penney (Rhode Island) hit a two-run home run in the same at-bat, to make the score 9-4 Mystic. They weren’t done yet, as Jack Harley (Stetson) grounded out to first base, driving in a run, and Anthony Belisario (UConn) walked in another run to make the score 11-4 Mystic after a massive fifth inning. 

In the bottom of the seventh, Gabriel Tirado (UConn) hit a sac fly, driving in a run to make the score 11-5, but that wouldn’t be enough for Danbury as the Schooners took game one 11-5. 

Box Score

Mystic Schooners vs Danbury Westerners (Game Two)

Final Score/7: Mystic 11, Danbury 7

Danbury, CT - The Schooners completed the sweep against Danbury, putting up another 11-spot led by two home runs from Nick Locurto (Virginia Tech). For only seven innings of play, both teams put up a combined 18 runs, with the first scoreless inning coming in the bottom of the fourth. 

In the first inning, Mystic and Danbury traded two runs each. Locurto scored on a sacrifice fly, and Michael Torres’s (Miami) RBI single plated Davis Johnson (Notre Dame). Peter Link (Sacred Heart) hit his fourth home run of the season in the bottom of the frame, with this one tying the game at two.

Mystic scored four in the top of the second off a Locutro two-run blast and a Torres two-RBI double. Danbury would respond on a bases-loaded walk and a William Cook (Wright State) two-RBI single to cut the lead to one. The Schooners extended the lead in the top of the third on an AJ Aschettino (Northeastern) single, but Danbury responded in the bottom of the frame as Aidan Paradine (Siena) scored on a wild pitch to bring the score to 7-6.

After six runs and five in the first three innings, Danbury could only muster three hits the rest of the way, with one of them being Link’s second blast of the game. Mystic had a pair of two-run innings in the fourth and fifth, with both being two-RBI blasts off the bats of Locurto and Maddix Dalena (UConn).

With the win, Mystic gets their fourth in a row as they jump back up to .500 at 13-13. The Westerners drop to 8-13, losing their fourth in a row. They look to get back in the win column tomorrow in a road contest against the Valley Blue Sox at 1:05 pm, while the Schooners host the Martha’s Vineyard Sharks tomorrow at 4:00 pm, looking to extend the winning streak.

Box Score