Wareham, Mass. – When the Cotuit Kettleers made the trip to Spillane Field on Friday to play the Wareham Gatemen, many expected the two potent offenses to show out. Instead, they were in a nail-biting pitcher's duel where the Ketts came out on top, 2-1.
While the bullpens were good, the starting pitching is what stood out. Cotuit's Payton Manca (Florida State) was fantastic, tossing six innings of shutout baseball while allowing just two baserunners. On the other side, Tate McGuire (Arkansas) wasn't shabby either, giving up one unearned run across 5 2/3 innings.
Both teams only mustered two hits each, but Cotuit capitalized on Wareham's mistakes to capture their third consecutive win and move to second place in the West Division.
"We had to adjust our pregame schedule and the game time [because of the weather delay]. We're playing probably the hottest team in the league over the last three weeks at their place, where they pretty much dominate people," says Cotuit manager Loren Hibbs.
"To come in here and do this, I'm proud of our guys. They need to recover tonight, get some rest, and then hopefully be ready to go again tomorrow."
Neither offense could put anything together until Cotuit made noise in the top of the sixth. Luke Matthews (Kent State) led off with a single before advancing to second on a fielder's choice. With two outs and a runner in scoring position, McGuire was pulled for Ty Starke (Louisville).
On Starke's first pitch, Matthews took off for third base and successfully stole. However, an errant throw by the Wareham catcher sailed into left field, allowing the middle infielder to score.
Manca came out for his sixth inning of work in the bottom of the frame but sat at 65 pitches. The Seminole hurler quickly retired the side, striking out the final batter and hopping off the mound in excitement.
That was Manca's final inning in his first start since he gave up five earned runs to the Y-D Red Sox on July 16.
"Coach O'Connor and I talked about competing from the first pitch. I have to pitch a little mad, have a little fire under me," Manca said. "I have to come out throwing the first pitch, thinking nobody can hit me. I did that and got a lot of weak outs. Obviously, it paid off; we got the win."
Cotuit threatened again in the top of the eighth with runners on first and second with no outs. Matthews laid down a perfect sac-bunt to advance both Kettleers into scoring position.
Case Sanderson (Nebraska) was the next batter and hit a slow dribbler to the shortstop, who couldn't make the play. Dean West (UCLA) used the error to come home, extending his team's lead to 2-0 with six outs to go.
Wareham made things interesting when Hayden Yost (Florida) roped a leadoff double in the bottom of the ninth, then came into score two batters later.
Kettleer reliever Jonathan Adelmann (Bucknell) stood on the mound with empty bases and two outs, looking to seal a big win for the Script C.
Up stepped power-hitting Chris McHugh (NC State) in a big spot. Adelmann and McHugh battled, but on the fifth pitch of his at bat, the third baseman flew out to end the game as the Kettleers held on for a 2-1 victory over the Gatemen.
Notes
Ryne Farber (Auburn) has played every game this season for the Kettleers. He's the only player in the CCBL to play in all 32 games.
Payton Manca's six-inning outing is the longest appearance for a Cotuit pitcher this summer.
With Friday's win, the Ketts sit just two games back from the first-place Gatemen and hold the league's second-best run differential (+22).
Looking Ahead
The Kettleers are back on the road tomorrow against the Bourne Braves for the two teams' final regular-season matchup. First pitch from Doran Park is at 6:00 p.m.
