BOURNE, Mass. — The Braves gave up six runs in the first inning in the opener against the Harwich Mariners — just like Game 1 of the 2025 season, Bourne put itself behind early against the Hyannis Harbor Hawks on Thursday.
Leading off for Hyannis was Matthew Miura (Hawaii). He hit a ball that skied in the air in foul territory halfway down the first base side of the infield for what looked like a routine pop out, but neither Campbell Smithwick (undecided) nor Weber Neels (Minnesota) could come down with it.
The Harbor Hawks poured on three runs in the frame and never let up. Despite a furious rally by the Braves in the bottom of the seventh, Hyannis left Doran Park with an 8-5 win.
“We just got to get more focused on not making stupid mistakes,” field manager Scott Landers said. “It sounds like a broken record. We beat ourselves.”
The scoring opened up for Hyannis in the top of the first, as Jaxon Willits (Oklahoma) drove in Miura on an RBI single. The Harbor Hawks tacked on a pair of runs right after that, as a two-run knock by Ray Velazquez (Austin Peay State) cashed in Andrew Williamson (UCF) and Willits on the ground-rule double, extending the lead to 3-0.
Bourne tacked on a run in the ensuing half inning, as Peyton Bonds (Rutgers) started the frame with a leadoff single, slotting in at the No. 1 spot in the lineup for Jon LeGrande (St. John’s). LeGrande advanced Bonds over to third with a sacrifice fly, and Bonds scored on the next at-bat as Kade Lewis (Wake Forest) cut the deficit to 3-1 on a single for his fifth RBI of the year.
The Harbor Hawks added two more runs over the next two innings, as Velazquez drove in Willits after his walk and a steal in the fourth, while Miura’s contact in the fifth had him scoring Jason Walks (Oklahoma) after he got a free pass and stole a base. The frame concluded with Hyannis in front, 5-1.
“We give away freebies, whether it's walks, errors, give-away runs,” Landers said. “We can't do that.”
Hyannis continued its scoring spree in the sixth, as a two-run single by Myles Bailey (Florida State) off the glove of Neels at first base cashed in Willits and Williamson. The lead increased to 8-1 as Velazquez scored off a wild pitch by Louis Marinaro (St. John’s).
Bourne added another run in the third inning. Bonds notched his second leadoff double before taking third on a balk from Richie Roman (Houston). He crossed home plate on LeGrande’s sacrifice fly.
The Braves trailed 8-2 after six, but the squad found life after the seventh. After a walk by Logan Hughes (Texas Tech) and a double by Neels, Smithwick drove in Hughes on an infield single. Bryce Molinaro (Penn State) scored Neels on an RBI single. LeGrande drove in Smithwick from third to pull within three, 8-5.
The Braves had a runner on third with the sluggers due up, but Lewis and Braden Holcomb (Vanderbilt) faced the music from pitcher Santi Garcia (Central Arizona junior college) as they both struck out to end the inning.
“Offensively, we were striking out too much,” Landers said. “We had our chances in big situations, and we just struck out.”
Bourne once again had a runner in scoring position in the eighth as Hughes got his way to third after Neels walked and a throwing error on a back-pick attempt by Garcia. He was stranded 90 feet from home, as Waite flew out to end the frame.
The Braves had the top of the order in the ninth but couldn’t get anything going off of Tommy O’Rourke (Vanderbilt), going down 1-2-3 to end the game.
“We got to come back tomorrow, and we got to refocus and get a little more grit to our at-bats in our game with a little more enthusiasm,” Landers said.
Bourne Braves Player of the Game
Will Whelan (Minnesota) was effective in relief, going three innings with two strikeouts and zero runs. Hyannis had bases loaded in the ninth, but Whelan was able to get out of the jam.
Through two appearances on the Cape this summer, he has posted four innings, three strikeouts and zero runs.
Key moment
Noah Franco (TCU) made his debut on the mound following appearances as a designated hitter for the Braves, but it was his first inning that caused Bourne to go down early.
A three-run frame for the Harbor Hawks ultimately gave them a cushion as they won by the trio of runs, with Bourne sparking a comeback in the seventh.
A look ahead
Bourne (1-2-2, 4 points) will have a second consecutive matchup at Doran Park, as it will host the Brewster Whitecaps on Thursday (5-0-0, 10 points). Brewster is the lone undefeated team on the Cape and beat the Braves, 4-3, in eight innings Tuesday.
First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.
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Follow Lyle on X, @lalenstein. Feature photo by Isabel Swindall. Follow her on Instagram, @iswindall.jpg.
