Going into the off day, it seemed like the Firebirds had finally found their rhythm.

After two-straight wins, Orleans had two days until its next matchup against Bourne at home on Tuesday night.

“We just played the kind of baseball that we should play,” Elijah Ikes said after the win against Brewster. “If we can do the little things like we did today, it shows on the scoreboard, and that’s how we win games.”

Unfortunately for the Birds, that didn’t hold true against the Braves at a humid Eldredge Park. Despite the temperature, the Hill was packed until the final moments of the game.

It wasn’t exactly clear who was going to take the game until the final strike.

With two outs on the board and down 2–1 to the Braves, all eyes were on pinch hitter Robbie Lavey (George Washington). The crowd quieted down, as Lavey mustered up a hit to left field.

However, before he could make it, he grounded out, ending the game.

The Braves never fully ran away with the lead in the matchup, though.

In fact, there never was a time in the game where it seemed like the Birds weren’t capable of making a comeback.

While the first inning was silent for both squads, the second was when things really started to heat up.

On the mound starting for the Birds was Miles Gosztola (Oregon). In his 3 IP, he allowed three hits, one run, and notched four strikeouts.

After two walks and two strikes to start the inning, Gosztola now had Gavin Kelly (West Virginia) at bat. Locking eye contact with the second baseman, Gosztola released the ball toward home, as Kelly’s bat made direct contact with the ball.

Singling on a ground ball to right field, Kelly scored Weber Neels (Minnesota) on the play, as the Braves now had a 1–0 edge.

The Birds were unable to respond in the bottom of the second.

Despite Elijah Ickes (Hawaii) starting the inning with a walk, that was the most success that Orleans would have.

With one out after Jonathan Mendez (UC Santa Barbara) flew out to right fielder Braden Holcomb (Vanderbilt), Alejandro Garza (Cal Poly) had his shot at putting Orleans on the board.

However, the Braves would shut down any Garza attempt. Grounding into a double play, Ryan Cooney (Oregon) fired the ball to second baseman Kelly, who then returned it to first baseman Jacob Krieg (Oregon State).

The third inning appeared to be a punch-for-punch battle, as both squad’s defenses contained any offensive attack.

Luke Pettitte (Dallas Baptist) stood on the mound next for the Birds to start the fourth. Holding the Braves to no runs, Pettitte kept the hopes of an Orleans comeback alive.

In the next inning, Pettitte’s dominance only continued, holding Bourne to a 1–2–3 inning.

The bottom of the sixth inning was when the game started to turn around for the Birds.

After Michael Crossland (UC San Diego) reached on a throwing error by Kade Lewis (Wake Forest), he wasn’t done just yet. Stealing second, Crossland was one step closer to bringing the Birds their first run of the night.

A Sebastian Pisacreta (Pittsburgh) walk only intensified this, as Crossland now stood on third.

Soon enough, a Mendez RBI would provide a sigh of relief for the Birds, as he brought Crossland home.

With the score knotted 1–1, it was anyone’s game.

Following three consecutive 1–2–3 innings, the ninth inning had finally rolled around.

Yet, it didn’t take too long for the Braves to make a dent. In his first hit on bat, Logan Hughes (Texas Tech) launched a home run over the Orleans’ outfield and over the fence of Eldredge, as the crowd went quiet.

Unfortunately, for the Birds, a comeback was too little too late, as a 1–2–3 ninth inning, silenced Orleans’ chances of continuing its winning streak.

Manager Kelly Nicholson put it best earlier when describing the competitiveness of the Cape League.

“Just another game, another hard game in the Cape League,” Nicholson said.