BREWSTER, Mass. — The Hyannis Harbor Hawks survived a close battle with the Brewster Whitecaps on a gorgeous Friday evening in a tight 3-2 battle that featured some great pitching.
Despite being outhit nine to three, the Hawks (19-13-1) pitching staff silenced a potent Brewster (12-20-1) offense that consisted of four East All-Star starters.
"Offense was slow for eight of the nine innings," head coach Mitch Karraker said. "But we got some big hits when it mattered. [Eddy Pelc's] single was huge to bust that thing open a little bit, our pitching staff held their ground and did a really nice job of putting up zeros on the board to keep us in it the whole way."
After a stagnant five innings that saw just one Harbor Hawk reach safely, Karraker’s offense finally broke things open in the top of the sixth. Hyannis took advantage of southpaw Jacob Marlowe finishing his day after five scoreless, as Andrew Koshy immediately walked Josh Tate (Georgia Southern) and Blake Cavill (transfer portal) after entering the contest.
Carson Boles (Arkansas) smoked a single to load the bases, and Michael Dattalo (Dallas Baptist) got plunked on the shoulder to bring home the first run of the game for either side. The Hawks extended their lead after Pelc (Grand Canyon) laced a two-RBI double despite an unfavorable lefty-lefty matchup after Brewster went to the pen. Those three runs were all Hyannis needed at Stony Brook Field.
"Honestly, just being out here with these guys, it's just an absolute blessing," Pelc said. "I was able to come through in that big spot and pad our lead, so that was just really special."
Pelc came through in the three-hole for Hyannis, he finished the game going 1-for-3 with two RBI, a walk and some nice defensive plays in right field.
"[Going into the All-Star break], I think the team is feeling really good about where we're at now," Karraker said. "It always starts with pitching and the defense, if we can establish that early in the game, we're going to be OK. Our offense, it's coming... I can feel it."
Like most road games this summer, the Harbor Hawk offense got off to a slow start at Stony Brook Field. Despite the gorgeous Friday evening, 14 of Hyannis’ first 15 batsmen were retired by Marlowe with ease, five of which struck out swinging.
Luckily for Hyannis, Blaine Wynk (Ohio State) was up to the task and then some against Brewster. The right-handed pitcher was brilliant throughout his fourth start of the summer, using his elite fastball off his changeup and sweeper very effectively, keeping the Whitecaps off-balance and late.
"[Wynk] is really fun to watch," Karraker said. "The stuff is really good, I think he was touching [95, 96 mph] and just pounded the strike zone. He pitches with intensity and quickness and that makes it fun for our defense and gets us back into the dugout really quick."
Wynk dotted five strikeouts, walked two and scattered a pair of knocks to ultimately toss up four zeros on Friday. He's been great at working out of jams and proved that once again as he got out of a few Brewster scoring chances with multiple ducks on the pond. Wynk started as a reliever at the beginning of summer for Hyannis but quickly turned into a lights-out starter with a 2.55 ERA.
"For me, it was just fastballs located well all [Friday]," Wynk said. "It was a little different because I went heavy fastball, compared to some other outings this summer. I was going based off of what was being hit, and just kind of stuck with it."
Aaron Mishoulam (Michigan State) followed Wynk not only on the bump but in getting out of sticky situations. In the bottom of the fifth, the Whitecaps looked to break the 0-0 tie after a pair of leadoff knocks, but when their lineup turned over, the lengthy Spartan reliever issued a pop-up and a strikeout to weather the storm.
Mishoulam pitched 1 2/3 innings in relief, he punched out a pair and earned his first win as a Harbor Hawk. Chandler Dorsey (South Florida) provided 2 1/3 frames after Mishoulam and picked up his first hold of the summer.
Brewster showed life toward the end when Kaeden Kent clubbed a two-run home run in the bottom of the ninth, but it wasn't enough. In his first appearance as a Hawk, Joe Steeber (Texas) grabbed the save.
"That's two in a row going into the break," Pelc said. "I think we're all in a great headspace and we're excited to keep going. We have been sticking together pretty well, but we will use the [All-Star break] to rest up for a big week."
Sam Fosberg can be reached at samfozsports@gmail.com and followed on Twitter/X @discussbaseball
