COTUIT, Mass. — The Cotuit Kettleers and Bourne Braves know each other very well. The division rivals have met in each of the last three West Division Finals, with Bourne coming out on top each time. However, in their first meeting of the 2026 season neither team got the upper hand as they tied 3-3 in a game called short for darkness after seven innings.
On paper, Cotuit should have won this game. Their pitching staff allowed just two hits and worked out of a couple of big jams. The bats were solid as usual, with some key hits in big moments. But the game is not played on paper. As legendary English soccer manager Brian Clough once said, “unfortunately the game is played on grass.”
‘On grass’ the Kettleers had five errors in the field, multiple of which contributed to Bourne scoring. Cotuit’s pitchers also walked eight batters, an asinine amount considering they did not walk a batter in 17 of the 18 innings played before their matchup with the Braves.
“We played the first two games pretty clean, not a lot of errors or strikeouts as hitters,” Cooper said. “Today we gave a lot of freebies and that can’t happen.”
Coach Rob Cooper knows that this one was in the hands of Cotuit, and that stings for a team that was looking to start 3-0 in the young season. Given the clean manner in which the Kettleers played their first two games, it feels anomalous that this one slipped away.
“If we take care of the ball a little bit better and play a little bit cleaner, then I think we have a real chance to win that game,” Cooper said.
That being said, the positives of this game cannot be forgotten. For example, Cotuit did an excellent job mitigating damage when mistakes were made. Allowing three runs is by no means a bad game, and the Kettleer pitchers showed resilience when they were faced with pressure. In both the first and second inning Grady Bivens (Transfer Portal) faced runners in scoring position on the mound but kept a clean sheet by forcing flyouts. Later on, Eli Buxton (Arizona State) got a critical strikeout in the seventh inning to keep the game tied with the bases loaded.
Another big positive of the game is that the Kettleers, particularly some players who have yet to shine, had big clutch hits to keep Cotuit in the game. Jayce Lee (Notre Dame) and Isaac Sturgess (Transfer Portal) both notched their first hits as Kettleers when they each had an RBI single. With so many talented players on the roster, it is hard for all to have their hallmark moment. But, they all have the capacity to do so.
“These guys are all good players, and every single one of them is arguably the best player on their college team,” Cooper said. “They’re all going to have chances to compete against real talent here and the staff and I know they will shine.”
To close his postgame speech today, Cooper offered his players a challenge. He wants them to see through the errors and strikeouts today and keep on competing through the next game.
“I’m trying to get these guys to understand that the real grind of baseball happens when the game is being very unforgiving towards you,” Cooper said. “How do you then refocus and keep battling?
The Kettleers will have another chance to shine right away when they take on the Harwich Mariners tomorrow. First pitch at Whitehouse Field is slated for 6:30 P.M. EDT tomorrow, with the projected starting pitcher for Cotuit being Joel Core (Stetson).
