COTUIT, Mass. — During the regular season, the Bourne Braves seemed to play some of their best baseball at Lowell Park.

In three games in Cotuit, the Braves went 2-1 — their one loss being a darkness-shortened, one-run defeat — and outscored the Kettleers 26-14 across that stretch. But the playoffs are a completely different season, a clean slate that Cotuit took advantage of in Game 1 of the West Championship Series.

The Kettleers shut down the Braves offense on Wednesday, holding them to four hits and snapping their previous nine-game unbeaten streak dating back to July 25.

“We had to change approaches and we didn’t,” field manager Scott Landers said. “They threw us backwards all night, a lot of changeups. We’ve got to figure it out tonight and come back tomorrow.”

Similar to Tuesday night in Hyannis, Bourne’s starting pitcher didn’t settle in immediately. Righty Chase Meyer (West Virginia) conceded a leadoff single to outfielder Brandon Compton (Arizona State) and plucked first baseman Tanner Thach (UNC Wilmington) with one out. Outfielder Charles Davalan (Arkansas) then moved Compton to third by hitting into a fielder’s choice.

Before they knew it, the Braves were playing from behind, as Compton took advantage of a wild pitch from Meyer to score from third.

It wasn’t long before the Braves’ offense answered, with the top of the order coming through in the third. After designated hitter Camden Kozeal (Vanderbilt) grounded out, outfielder Chris Stanfield (LSU) drew a walk and stole second base. He then took advantage of a wild pitch to reach third, and shortstop Marek Houston (Wake Forest) drove him in by pulling a two-out RBI single — Bourne’s 28th two-out RBI in the past 10 games — to tie the game at 1.

While Meyer settled in for his next two frames on the bump, even facing the minimum in the third, he ran into more trouble when he took the mound for the fourth. Walking Thach and Davalan to kick off the frame, Meyer could only watch as catcher Matt Klein (Louisville) laid down a sacrifice bunt that advanced each baserunner 90 feet. A passed ball and single surrendered to second baseman Jarren Advincula (California) quickly put Cotuit up, 3-1.

Aside from those three runs, Meyer did a sensational job on the mound, only giving up three runs on four hits in six innings — the longest appearance of any Braves arm this summer. His wild pitch proved costly, but he didn’t have issues with command with only two walks issued. It was a frustrating result of a start that was strong overall.

“There was one passed ball, one wild pitch that they scored on,” Landers said. “I thought we threw the ball really well tonight.”

The confidence within the Braves’ dugout never wavered, though. Each player knew the lineup could erase a two-run deficit in a hurry, especially with 15 outs to work with.

“We knew we were still in the game,” Houston said. “We knew that we had a good chance to come back, and we did our best.”

Bourne began its comeback effort the next time it was on offense in the fifth. Catcher John Schroeder (Florida Atlantic) and Kozeal put the Braves in a favorable position by walking and singling, respectively, with no outs, allowing Stanfield to bring in a run with a sacrifice bunt.

But as was the case through most of the night, Bourne simply couldn’t get going at the plate. In total, the Braves only had five runners in scoring position, converting on one of those opportunities. Through the final five innings of Game 1, righty Ryan Buckler (Florida Atlantic) was virtually untouchable, as he was responsible for just two baserunners and fanned four.

Braves reliever Justin West (Louisville) was solid in his own right through the contest’s last two innings, keeping his team within a run of Cotuit. Bourne’s best chance to tie the game was in the top of the eighth when Houston singled with two outs and made his way to second due to a balk. Third baseman Braden Holcomb (Vanderbilt) then worked a six-pitch walk, but outfielder Tristan Bissetta (Clemson) chopped a grounder right to third base that stranded the two runners.

Pitcher of the Game — Justin West

Meyer’s six-inning outing is certainly worthy of high praise, but the job that West did in his two innings on the bump ultimately kept Bourne with a fighting chance to come back and win the game late.

The bottom of the seventh — his first frame of work — was finished almost immediately after it started, with West inducing three quick outs and needing only nine pitches to do so. His next time out, however, wasn’t nearly as seamless.

West kicked it off by walking shortstop Luke Hanson (Virginia) but managed to work a 3-2 count against Compton, who hit .331 on the summer and had two hits on Tuesday. Compton got ahold of the sixth offering of the at-bat, crushing a double into center field that just got under the glove of Bissetta. To make matters worse, Holcomb had trouble corralling the potential assist from Bissetta at third, meaning Hanson was safe despite being a step behind the throw.

With Thach, Cotuit’s leader in home runs, at the plate, West made the safe decision and intentionally walked him, loading the bases with only one out on the board. He battled through the next two at-bats but ultimately got two outs to end the inning, a gutsy performance from a pitcher whose back was against the wall.

“We made one blunder in the eighth, and West got out of it without any damage,” Landers said.

A look ahead

Trailing Cotuit 1-0 in the best-of-three West Championship Series, Bourne will head to Doran Park in another win-or-go-home scenario on Thursday. The Braves dropped both regular-season meetings with the Kettleers at home, the most recent result being a 3-1 loss on July 14.

Right-hander Tyler Fay (Alabama) will likely get the start for Bourne in Game 2. Starting three of his nine appearances on the Cape this summer, the Nebraska native owns a 3.16 ERA and 22 strikeouts in 31 1/3 innings. His last start was against Falmouth on Aug. 1, when he allowed five hits and struck out three in five scoreless frames, helping the Braves to a win that locked up their spot in the postseason.

The Kettleers’ starter is to be determined. First pitch is at 6 p.m.

Notes

Outfielder Ethan Conrad (Wake Forest) is now on a 15-game hitting streak after logging a knock on Wednesday… With two hits, Houston’s on-base streak is now at 17 games, nearly half of a Cape Cod League regular season… Bourne has stolen the most bases (three) in the postseason through two games… The Braves have also struck out the most batters (15) during the playoffs.