ORLEANS – Twice Barnstable had the lead and twice it let it go as the host Nauset Warriors came back last night at Eldredge Park to defeat the Red Raiders for the second time this season, 7-4.
Down 4-3 heading into the bottom of the sixth inning, Barnstable starting pitcher Ben Floren retired the first two batters before giving up a trio of successive singles that saw the hosts tie it at 4-4. An ensuing infield error on what would have been the third out led to Floren’s exit after 5 2/3 innings of work and then sophomore Ryan Bruning took the hill for the guests.
Mason Swift, Trevor Ridley and Ben Chisholm were the deadly three who each notched safeties before Noah Grevelis grounded to short and arrived safely on the attempted throw which gave the hosts a 5-4 lead.
Bruning then came in and allowed a two-run single to Nauset’s Willy Boyd for a 7-4 Nauset lead before he struck out Gerritt Merrill to get out of the inning.
But the damage had been done.
Barnstable stranded two baserunners in the top of the seventh inning. Mike Doherty, who came on in relief of starter Paul Prue, got the win.
Boyd (2-4, 4 RBI), Swift (2-2) and Ridley (2-3) each had multiple hits for the Warriors.
The game had been deadlocked in a 0-0 tie until the top of the third inning when Joel Carlson and JR DiSarcina each singled and with two outs sophomore Jack Kennedy belted an 0-1 Prue offering over the leftfield wall for a 3-0 lead. It was Kennedy’s third homer of the season.
But that lead was shortlived as Nauset staged its own three-run rally in the bottom half of the third on hits from Swift, Ridley, Grevelis and Boyd. Ben Chisholm tacked on an RBI-sacrifice fly to add fuel to the fire.
Barnstable went ahead 4-3 in the top of the sixth after a double by Chris Weber and single to move him over by Jackson Badot. Weber came home on a Carlson check swing tapper to the first base side of the pitcher’s mound.
But Nauset erased that lead in the bottom half of the sixth and did not relinquish the lead thereafter.
The Warriors (11-3) welcome the Marshfield Rams to Eldredge Park on Wednesday (May 13) at 4:30 pm, while the Red Raiders are scheduled to welcome St. John Paul II on Saturday (May 16) at 2:00 pm.
Dennis-Yarmouth Slugs it out With Host Vineyarders
The Dennis-Yarmouth Dolphins took their record to 8-5 on the season yesterday in Oak Bluffs, as the Dolphins hammered out 23 hits en route to a 14-8 victory over the host Vineyarders.
Dolphins’ pitcher Trevor Allen not only got the win on the mound for the guests, but he went 4-5 with a three-run homer and 4 RBI.
The Dolphins went up 4-2 after three frames then unloaded on the VIneyarders with a seven-run fourth inning barrage that included eight hits and Allen’s aforementioned three-run blast.
Jake Gleason went 3-4 for the Dolphins while Drew Cochran went 2-4 with a pair of doubles and Drew Gallant went 2-3 with two RBI. Matt Scruggs went 3-3 to add to the bleeding and, in essence, most if not all Dolphins saw action in the game.
Dennis-Yarmouth gets back to business today on the mainland when it welcomes Marshfield in an important Atlantic Coast League tilt slated for 4:00 pm at Merrill “Red” Wilson Field.
— Sean Walsh is the sports editor for www.capecod.com. His email is [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @coachwalshccbm