The Bourne Braves’ offense had a slow start in their Thursday night matchup against the Orleans Firebirds, but they found their groove in the second half of the game to secure an 8-2 victory.
The early part of the matchup was dominated by pitching. Braves’ starting pitcher RHP Jaden Alba (Arizona State) and Firebirds’ starter Casey Euper (Pepperdine) went back and forth in the first three innings. Each pitcher retired nine of the first ten batters, allowing only a single to each side.
“He threw a lot of strikes and minimized pitches, even with the strikeouts,” said Field Manager Scott Landers on his starter’s performance. “He let our defence play.”
“I was pounding the zone and getting ahead of hitters,” said Alba about his scoreless outing. “Using the fastball early and late, and mixing all my pitches.”
The first sign of life for either offense came from the Braves in the fourth. After Euper cruised through the first three innings unscathed, C Andrew Costello (Wake Forest) opened the fourth frame with a deep fly ball to left. Firebirds’ left fielder Tyler Myatt (Tennessee) leaped over the fence for the ball, but couldn't secure the catch as it landed for Costello’s first home run of the summer and a 1-0 Braves lead.
“I was just trying to do anything I could to help the team win,” said Costello. “I went up there with a good approach and good plan against that guy, and I just executed.”
Orleans started to finally get in a groove on offense in the fifth. The Firebirds got runners on first and second, threatening to ruin Alba’s scoreless start. With two outs in the inning, Landers came out to the mound to talk to his starter. Alba got the next batter to pop out to shortstop to end the inning and secure his shutout
“I let him know that this was it, so let it loose.” said Landers about the mound visit. “We went over the plan for the hitter, and he (Alba) got him in one pitch.”
In the seventh inning, the Braves would add to their lead. The first two Bravos’ hitters of the inning reached base, and a fielder’s choice put runners on the corners with one out. 2B Blake Schaaf (Wake Forest) drove in the second Braves run of the day on a groundout, and another baserunner would score on a passed ball in the next at-bat to make it a 3-0 Bourne advantage.
After staying silent for the first six innings, the Orleans offense would respond in the next half inning. With a runner on first and one out, Tyler Myatt (Tennessee) homered to left center field to bring the Firebirds back within a run of tying the game.
The high hopes of the Firebirds didn’t last long. Bourne broke the game open in the eighth inning, scoring five runs to reach the final score of 8-2. 1B Garrett Michel (Arizona State), 3B Luke Costello (Wake Forest), and Schaaf all had RBI hits in the frame to lead Bourne to the win.
In the bottom of the ninth, the Firebirds attempted one last rally. A pair of Braves’ errors and a walk loaded the bases for Orleans with only one out. With the Firebirds in striking distance, Cale Stricklin (Charlotte) struck a line drive that was heading for the left field corner before Braves’ third baseman Luke Costello picked the ball out of the air and stepped on third for an unassisted double play that ended the game.
WHAT IT MEANS
The Braves win their second straight game on the road, moving to 3-1-1 for the summer. Bourne will return home for the first time since last weekend as they look to stretch their win streak to three games.
BOURNEBRAVES.ORG PLAYER OF THE GAME
Tonight’s Player of the Game is Jaden Alba. In his second appearance and first start of the season, the right-hander threw five scoreless innings where he allowed just three hits and struck out five. Alba also became the first Braves’ starting pitcher to qualify for and earn a win this season.
NEXT UP
Bourne will return to Doran Park on Friday to take on the Falmouth Commodores for the first time this season. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. ET.
