Not much has changed at the top of the Eastern Division over the last week. Since Brewster jumped Harwich to take over first, the Whitecaps and Mariners have met very similar results. Neither team is pulling away. Harwich remains a point back of Brewster.
But below them, there’s plenty of change. Orleans beat Brewster 5-3 last night for its fifth straight win, while Y-D topped Harwich 5-4 for its second straight win and its fourth in six games.
Orleans is now tied with Harwich for second place with 39 points, one point back of Brewster. Y-D is in third place with 36, just four points out of first.
The Firebirds have been red-hot, with three of the wins in their streak coming against Harwich and Brewster. This time, Mike Hauschild (Dayton) went five shutout innings for the win, while the offense continued its steady production. Reed Gragnani (Virginia) went 4-for-4 with two RBI and Anthony Gomez (Vanderbilt) had two hits and an RBI. Trevor Gott (Kentucky) recorded his league-leading 10th save.
As for Y-D, the Red Sox haven’t been quite as hot as the Firebirds, but they’ve put themselves firmly in the mix. They scored two in the seventh yesterday to break a 3-3 tie, then held on for the 5-4 win. Joey DeNato (Indiana) got the win with four innings of shutout relief. Kyle Hansen (St. John’s) picked up the save. Stephen Piscotty (Stanford) and Matt Wessinger (St. John’s) each had two hits and an RBI to lead the offense.
Harwich loaded the bases in the bottom of the ninth, but Hansen got Jabari Henry (Florida International) to fly out to end the game.
Elsewhere
What to Watch
Game: Hyannis visits Brewster at 5 p.m. in another battle of first-place teams. Those two met on Friday and Hyannis came away with the win.
Player: Shortstop Austin Elkins (Dallas Baptist) has quietly become the Harbor Hawks’ leading hitter, with a .318 average.