Playoff spots are being secured, but it’s a team with work still to do that’s playing as well as anybody in the East Division.
The Harwich Mariners blasted Chatham 11-0 on Monday night, their second straight win over the first-place Anglers. The Mariners are 6-3-1 over their last 10 games, the best mark in the East in that span.
With a 20-20-1 record, Harwich has a five-point lead on Brewster for the final playoff spot. If they can hold the Whitecaps off, they’ll be a dangerous squad in the postseason, especially if they match up with the Chatham team that they’ve had good luck against lately.
Harwich had the more players in the All-Star Game than any other team. It seemed odd when selections were made, but it speaks to the talent in place. And it’s starting to shine through.
The Mariners had it all working Monday. Start with the pitching. Will Heflin (Tennesse) struck out six in five scoreless innings, and Nick Stewart (James Madison) was even better out of the pen, pitching four no-hit innings with seven strikeouts.
At the plate, Cory Acton (Florida) homered and had five RBI. Chris Lanzilli (Wake Forest) went 4-for-4 with two RBI, giving him six hits in his six at-bats over the last two games. Chris Galland (Boston College) added two hits and an RBI.
Orleans 7, Y-D 2
In another potential East Division playoff preview, Orleans rallied from a 2-1 deficit with six unanswered runs for a victory over Y-D. The first steps of the rally came on solo home runs, as Rob Emery (San Francisco) hit one to tie it and Tanner Murray (UC Davis) gave Orleans the lead two batters later. A run in the sixth and two in the seventh sent the Firebirds on their way. Max Troiani (Bentley) went 2-for-4 with two RBI. Jacob Hurtubise (Army) had two hits and scored two runs. Angelo Smith (Michigan) pitched four scoreless innings of relief for the win.
Wareham 7, Cotuit 2
Falmouth’s hot streak has them in position for the top seed in the West, but there’s still a battle for the second spot. Wareham fired a shot on that front with a win over Cotuit. The Gatemen trailed 2-0 early but broke out for six runs in the fifth inning. In his first game on the Cape, Pete Derkay (Tennessee) hit a two-run triple to start the big inning. Jacob Teter (Florida Southern), Adrian Del Castillo (Miami) and Dallas Beaver (South Carolina) chipped in one RBI each. Tanner Bibee (Cal State Fullerton) and Brandon Pfaadt (Bellarmine) were dominant in relief, Bibee striking out two in three scoreless innings and Pfaadt striking out six in three innings of no-hit baseball. Cotuit, which has dropped two in a row, got two hits from Nick Gonzales, who may follow up his NCAA batting title with a Cape crown. He now leads the lead at .352.
Falmouth 9, Hyannis 5; Falmouth 5, Hyannis 5
The Commodores got back to their winning ways in game one at McKeon Park but couldn’t quite start a new streak as they played Hyannis to a tie in the nightcap at Guv Fuller Field. Blake Dunn (Western Michigan) hit a grand slam in the opener, and Kevin Kendall (UCLA) also went deep. Hayden Cantrelle (Louisiana Lafayette) had two hits, an RBI and a run scored. Making just his second appearance, Christian Edwards (Jacksonville State) struck out five of the seven batters he faced to quiet a late push by Hyannis. In the second game, Hyannis took a 5-2 lead in the third, but Falmouth scored two runs in the fourth and one in the fifth to pull even. Jackson Olson (Hartford) homered and drove in three for the Harbor Hawks, while Jared DeSantolo (Florida Atlantic) had two hits and two RBI. Austin Masel (Holy Cross) and Tim Tawa (Stanford) each had two hits for Falmouth.
Bourne 13, Brewster 3
Bourne scored three runs in the top of the first. Brewster answered with two in the bottom half, but the Braves kept scoring and kept the Whitecaps’ end of the slugfest from materializing. Ryan Cusick (Wake Forest) allowed just those two runs while Karl Johnson (UConn) pitched three scoreless innings of relief. The Braves piled on with two runs in the third, three in the fifth and five in the sixth. Cody Morissette (Boston College) went 3-for-5 with a triple, a double and three RBI. Brendan Rivoli (Virginia) went 3-for-5 with two runs scored and three RBI. Cade Beloso (LSU) also had three RBI.
What to Watch
You can watch a lot of baseball in about a 15-mile radius tomorrow as the East Division goes qild with split doubleheaders. Chatham hosts Brewster at 1 p.m., Harwich hosts Orleans at 2, Harwich hosts Brewster at 6:30 and Orleans welcomes Chatham at 7. It’s like a round robin tournament.