North Adams Steeplecats vs Bristol Blues

Final Score: Bristol 8, North Adams 7

North Adams, MA – The Bristol Blues held on to a tight 8-7 victory over the North Adams Steeplecats Wednesday night. Despite a late comeback attempt from the Steeplecats, Bristol’s three-run sixth inning proved to be the decider in this one.

North Adams jumped on the board first in the bottom of the opening inning. Gabriel Natividad (Winthrop) started the game off with a single, but an error from the pitcher caused Natividad to advance to third, where Collin Overholt drove him in on a sacrifice fly and made it 1-0.

Bristol was able to tie the game up in the top of the third inning. Mikael Petersen (Brown) started things off with a double, but after two outs, it was Trevor Hansen (Manhattan College) who came to the Blues’ aid, delivering an RBI single and knotting things up at 1.

In the fourth inning, Bristol built upon momentum to take a big lead. After a flyout to start the inning, Alex Irizarry (Quinnipiac) singled and moved station-to-station when Rafael Rodriguez Rosa (Franklin Pierce) and Tyler Benick (LIU Post) were both hit by a pitch. Peterson stepped up to the occasion as he launched a grand slam to push the lead to 5-1, Blues. 

The Blues added three runs in the sixth inning to seemingly blow the game open and made it 8-1. With two runners on, Jonathan Chatfield (Keene St) drove both of them in via a double, and he came around to score on an RBI single from Scott Gell (Stony Brook). However, North Adams responded briefly in the seventh when Natividad drove in Matthew Lussier (Fairfield) on an RBI double.

Trailing 8-2 in the ninth, North Adams provided a bit of a scare to Blues fans. Two walks and a single loaded the bases for the Steeplecats, with wild pitches allowing Owen Arias (Central Connecticut St) and Michael Toth (UMass Amherst) to score. Bases-loaded walks to Nolan DeAndrade (Franklin Pierce), Alex Mendes (Mt St Mary's), and Arias drove in three more runs, but with the winning run on second, a pop-out ended the game 8-7.

Tyler Blumetti (Hartford) got the win for Bristol with three no-hit innings. As for North Adams, Tyler Tedeschi (NYU) was credited with the loss, giving up five runs in 3.2 innings. The Blues close out the regular season, posting a 27-17 record, good enough for second in the South Division and a spot in the playoffs. North Adams’ late-season push powered them into the playoffs, and with a 21-23 record, they hold the third spot in the North Division.

Box Score

Vermont Mountaineers vs Keene SwampBats

Final Score: Keene 8, Vermont 2

Keene, NH – The SwampBats capped off their dominant season with a North division win over the visiting Vermont Mountaineers, topping them 8-2 with late-game heroics from the Keene offense. 

The SwampBats scored early in the game, with their first run coming in the top of the first inning when Chandler Tuupo (Charleston Southern) singled back to the pitcher, driving home a run in the process. 

Following four innings of scoreless baseball, where both defenses showed their flashes, the SwmapBats were able to break through in the fifth inning. Michael O’Brien  (Arkansas Little Rock) launched a ball deep over the wall for a three-run. Keene added to its lead in the seventh, putting up four runs in the process. Connor Peek (Georgetown) started the scoring off with an RBI double. This was followed by another deep ball, this time by Andrew Bell (Duke), driving in two runs. The Strong inning was finished off with Ripken Reese (Kent State) coming home following a ground out. 

The Mountaineers were able to finally get on the board in the eighth inning with a sacrifice fly and then a solo home run in the ninth from Max LaLime (Mars Hill). Keene was able to hold on for the win. 

James Lordi (Central Florida) was able to secure the win after pitching five scoreless innings. Thomas Rosario (Florida Southern) was handed a loss to end the season. 

Both teams played their last game tonight, with the SwampBats turning towards the playoffs. The Mountaineers finish with a 16-28 record

Box Score

Danbury Westerners vs. Sanford Mainers 

Final Score: Danbury 10, Sanford 5

Sanford, ME- After hosting a game against North Shore in Danbury, the Westerners traveled just over four hours North to play the Mainers at home. Sanford got on the board first in the bottom of the first inning when Peter Keblinksy (Southern Maine) drove in two runs on a single to put the Mainers up 2-0. Luke Jenkins (UNC Greensboro) would follow up by driving in Kyle Douin (Southern Maine) on a sac fly to increase the lead to three-zip. 

Danbury responded right back in the top of the second when Michael Iannazzo (Maryland) grounded out to drive in Brice Estep (Coastal Carolina), and Garrett Larson (Yale) drove in Gavin Donohue (Sacred Heart) on an error by the shortstop to put the Westerners down 3-2. The motivation of a potential postseason berth kept Danbury rallying, as the next inning kicked off with a Jack Lutte (Denison) solo home run to tie up the game at three apiece. Donohue then drove in the go-ahead run with a sac fly to put Danbury up 4-3. Since that wasn’t enough, Aidan Stern (Trinity) drove in an insurance run with a single to increase the lead to 5-3.

The Mainers would fire back in the bottom of the fifth when Jorge Burgos (Southern New Hampshire) knocked in two runs on a single to left field, instantly tying up the game at 5-5. Danbury wasn’t having any of it, as in the top of the eighth, they would rally to put the game to sleep. Jack Lutte (Denison) drove in the go-ahead run with a sac fly, giving the lead back to Danbury at 6-5. With the bases loaded and a neck-and-neck race for the playoffs effect, Aidan Cohall (Florida International) would come up to bat and send one over the fence, hitting a grand slam to give Danbury a cozy 10-5 lead over Sanford. 

An offensive showout by the Westerners would help them take home the win, improving to 21-22. Sanford falls to 22-22, while still holding the two seed in the North. Danbury still has one game to go against Valley at 6:30 pm on Thursday, July 31st. 

Box Score