The Mariners knew they needed a quick outing in Game Two of the Eastern Division Finals against the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox.

After playing 12 innings to a 6-6 tie, Game Two was suspended Saturday night due to darkness. Harwich pitching was depleted. Field manager Steve Englert used four pitchers to get the team through the game.

Not only did the staff have to plan the pitching for when the teams reconvened Sunday afternoon to complete the game, they had to line up arms for Game Three in case of a win.

A lot had to go right to set up a successful Game Three.

And to every Mariner player and coach, it did.

Ryan Gerety swung at the second pitch he saw Ryder Brooks and hit a hard grounder to the right side of the infield. Second baseman Yomar Carreras made a tough play to backhand the ball but lost the grounder. He rushed his throw and pulled off first baseman Nick Costello.

The outfielder finished the marathon game with three hits.

Two batters later, Patrick Fultz lined a ball that went off the tip of the glove of a diving Jack Bell. Gerety attempted to go from first to third as the ball rolled into the outfield but was gunned down for the second out of the inning.

In that moment, it felt like Harwich had its last hope in the next batter walking to the plate: Aiden Robbins.

The Cape Cod Baseball League batting champion shines when his team needs him. He hit four of his six home runs and batted .390 when the Mariners were behind.

With a dislocated middle finger, Robbins put the ball into play for the third time in the game, waving what seemed to be a routine fly ball to right field.

Or at least that’s what Y-D right fielder Will Baker thought.

Battling the sun, Baker broke in as if the ball was going to drop in front of him. Suddenly, he turned around and watched the ball drop 30 feet behind him.

Off on contact, Fultz got waved home by third base coach Mark Thibeault. The third baseman snuck his hand behind catcher Connor Cepece, just barely beating the relay throw home.

Much like his first hit back in the lineup, Robbins shouted to his dugout from second base. Harwich came ready to play. He summed up the team’s unrelenting attitude simply by saying “We’re dogs.”

“We do what we have to do. We take care of business. Even when we're done, we keep on going.”

That one run was all the Mariners needed to send the series back home for Game Three later Sunday evening. Harwich won 7-6 to tie the Eastern Division Championship at one game apiece.

Five pitchers, almost four hours of gametime, and a full night of sleep. Even for Englert, who has been around for a while, it was a unique game. Despite the injuries, guys leaving, and overcoming deficits, he said the Mariners “don’t care.”

“They are absolute grinders,” he said. “I love these kids. They keep throwing punches every game.”

Left-handed pitcher Tyler Muscar became the fifth pitcher to appear in the game for Harwich. With Harwich using most of its pitchers in the past three days, the team called on the reliever from James Madison to send the boys home.

It would be only Muscar’s fourth inning of the summer, but it was undoubtedly his best. He needed just 11 pitchers to get out three Red Sox: infield pop outs to Capece and Dean Carpentier, and a hard line drive from Jayce Tharnish caught by third baseman Patrick Fultz to end the game.

Moving forward:

After a marathon game, Harwich and Y-D have a quick turnaround for the final game of the series. Both teams have just five hours before beginning Game Three. The winner will head to the Cape Cod League Championship. First pitch is at 5:30 p.m. from Whitehouse Field.