Patrick Fultz walked up to the plate in the ninth inning with one goal in mind: get the bat to the next guy. Coach Steve Englert had been preaching that phrase to the Mariners for the past week.

Harwich had men on first and second with no outs in a 5-5 game in Game Three of the opening round of the Cape Cod League Playoffs against the Brewster Whitecaps.

Fultz got the bunt sign from third base coach Mark Thibeault and knew his job was to set up the on-deck batter Sam DeCarlo for the win.

On the first pitch from Brewster pitcher Mitch Dye, Fultz laid down a beautiful bunt down the third base line, ensuring both runners would advance.

While hustling down the first base line, the rising senior expected the sure-handed third baseman Maddox Mihalakis to make the play.

That’s when the improbable happened.

“I wasn't expecting any commotion at first,” Fultz said. “Then as I’m running, I see the second baseman’s eyes get a little bigger.”

The ball then whizzed by him and first baseman Brendan Lawson into right field, allowing the runner from second base, Ryan Gerety, to run home and send the Mariners into the next round, winning 6-5. The Mariners overcame one-run deficits twice in the game, showing fight until the end.

“These guys are competitors,” field manager Steve Englert said. “We have very good chemistry. I’m glad our season is continuing.”

Gerety started the ninth inning rally with a single that squeezed through the right side of the infield. Matt Conte then drew the five-pitch walk to give Harwich the man in scoring position with no outs, setting up Fultz for the win.

“It’s funny. My first reaction is when you think of walk-offs you think of home runs, doubles, electric battles in the count for hit. You never think of a sacrifice bunt,” Fultz said.

Not only did the rally keep the Mariner season alive, it also made sure an all-time outing from Christian Rodriguez did not go to waste. Normally saved for the late innings, Englert called the fireballer to get the team out of a jam in the sixth inning.

With already two runs in the inning, Adam Magpoc drove in two more on a bases-loaded single to give Brewster the 5-4 lead. Rodriguez relieved lefty Tyler Muscar with two outs and men on the corners. Facing Lawson, his Florida teammate, Rodriguez got him to fly out to deep left field to end the bleeding.

In the eighth, Rodriguez won the battle of the teammates again. With a man on first, the righty flew a fastball by one of the league’s best hitters to end the inning. Feeling the energy of the game, the normally even-keeled pitcher wasted no time to get back to the dugout.

“Adrenaline is pumping from both sides,” he said. It’s an emotional game. We wanted this one. We knew Brewster was going to come out hot.”

Even though he was at a season-high 45 pitches, there was no question Rodriguez was going to come out for the ninth. Him and Englert gave each other a look, knowing it was the pitcher’s game to finish.

“Coach and I have a very good relationship. He knows we’re going to do what we’re going to do on the mound,” Rodriguez said.

In the final frame, he added two punchouts to finish with seven on the night. Despite allowing a two-out single, he got Carson Kerce to pop-out to Sam Harris in foul territory to complete a masterful 3.1 inning of pitching.

Offense takes advantage of Brewster Mistakes:

While Harwich scored six runs on the night, only two came off hits.

Fultz, who batted .417 in the series, and DeCarlo scored the team’s first two runs on wild pitches from Kyle Kipp in the fourth inning. With Ernie Echevarria at third, Niko Brini picked up the Mariner’s first RBI with a single to right.

The right fielder set the tone for the offense all night, going 3-4 and drawing a walk. He tied the game at five in sixth on another wild pitch from Brewster. Standing at third base, Brini saw a pitch from Zach Bates was going to be in the dirt. As soon as the ball bounced slightly away from catcher Jacob Jarrell, Brini used all of his speed to score.

The rising senior at Wofford dominated Brewster pitching all week, batting .500 in three games with an OPS of 1.176.

DeCarlo picked up the team’s other RBI on the night in the fifth with an RBI single to drive in catcher Matt Conte, who extended his on-base streak to 20 games, dating back to the regular season.

Moving Forward:

Mariners live to season another series. They take on the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox in the East Division Finals. Pierce Friedman will likely get the start for Harwich. It will be a rematch of last year’s East championship, when Harwich swept Y-D 2-0.

First pitch for Game One will be at 6:30 from Whitehouse Field.