BOURNE, Mass. — A two-out walk by Jon LeGrande (St. John’s) got the comeback effort started in the ninth.

A throwing error by Wyatt Halverson (Arizona State) on the pickoff attempt moved LeGrande over to second.

The go-ahead run was at second with Braden Holcomb (Vanderbilt) stepping into the batter’s box, and he delivered the walk-off blast to put Bourne over the top, 5-4, Sunday.

“He came up big in a big spot, honestly, just like he did in the spring for (Vanderbilt),” Braves field manager Scott Landers said.

The Braves had the momentum going early, as the bottom of the first had Ryker Waite (Vanderbilt) reach first on a leadoff walk. LeGrande moved him over to second on a fielder’s choice, and Waite made his way to third on his third stolen base of the season.

Waite then scored on a wild pitch by Kettleers starter Joey Volchko (Stanford). Holcomb then reached first on a free pass, then he stole second. A Weber Neels (Minnesota) rip to the outfield scored Holcomb and had the Braves leave the frame with a 2-0 lead.

Shortly after, Cotuit answered, as the top of the second had Camden Johnson (Wichita State) connect for a double. Following a steal that got him to third, Johnson scored on a sacrifice fly by Easton Winfield (Texas), cutting the deficit to 2-1.

The Kettleers then knotted it up at 2-2, as a leadoff walk by Ryne Farber (Texas State) had him reach third base after a steal, a walk by Nolan Stevens (Mississippi State) and a single by Johnson off of the glove of Kade Lewis (Wake Forest) loaded the bases. Joe Colucci (Virginia) couldn’t get out of the jam for Bourne, as he walked Winfield on four pitches to score Farber, evening the score.

Cotuit then took its first lead of the evening in the ensuing half inning, as a triple by Winfield had him scoring on a sacrifice fly by Luke Lavin (Stanford). The Kettleers then had a 3-2 lead entering the bottom of the fifth.

The Braves didn’t trail for long, as LeGrande reached second following a walk and an advance on the bases following a fielder's choice by Holcomb after a nine-pitch at-bat. Lewis then hit a blooper to center field that hit the outfield grass, scoring LeGrande to tie the game at 3-3.

“We didn't get ourselves in a big hole like the previous games that we had to battle back and fall short,” Landers said. "We got behind 1-0 and then came back. We had the lead and they tied it up.”

The lead would go right back to Bourne in the sixth, as Noah Franco (TCU) reached on his second walk of the contest. After advancing to second on a wild pitch by Zane Coppersmith (Stetson), he scored on a hard-hit ball by Waite that escaped the glove of Rintaro Sasaki as it went through his legs, making the score 4-3. Waite then exited the contest due to getting banged up at first base on a slide back to the bag.

Two innings later, Cotuit tied it up again, as Stevens walked and then scored as Sasaki had his first hit on the Cape in no bigger moment, driving an RBI double to the wall to even the game at four apiece.

Despite the resilience from the Kettleers, it was a sweet swing from Holcomb that pushed the Bourne over the top in the bottom of the ninth, winning its second straight in walk-off fashion headed into the off day.

“We need a day off,” Landers said. "These guys, they're not used to playing every single day, so we're going to relax. Have them enjoy the day and then we'll get back at it.”

Bourne Braves Player of the Game

Holcomb went 1-for-3 with two walks and a run, but the hit was the difference maker on an RBI single that cashed in LeGrande for the game-winning run.

Key moment

The drive by Braden Holcomb ultimately sealed the deal, but Will Whelan (Minnesota) came into relief and ignited the Braves in the dugout in fiery fashion after tossing 1 ⅔ innings with two strikeouts and zero runs, picking up the win in the process.

A look ahead

The Braves (3-4-1, 7 points) will have an off day Monday before hitting the road to face the Orleans Firebirds (4-4-0, 8 points) on Tuesday. Orleans is coming off a 6-2 win over the Brewster Whitecaps.

First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.

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Follow Lyle on X, @lalenstein. Feature photo by Isabel Swindall. Follow her on Instagram, @iswindall.jpg.