FALMOUTH, Mass. — Like any successful pitcher, right-hander Ben Bybee (Arkansas) doesn’t let one bad inning get to him.

Instead, he uses it to fuel the rest of his outing. Doing this isn’t easy and takes mental fortitude, but if done right, it can result in a pitcher dominating after they seem to be struggling out of the gate.

That’s what Bybee did on Thursday against Falmouth, salvaging a disastrous first inning and turning it into an otherwise solid outing. Despite their starter only allowing two runs, the Braves (3-7-1) couldn’t pick up the win, as a late two-RBI single propelled the Commodores (3-8) to a 4-2 victory.

“I think I did a good job,” Bybee said. “I kind of use that bad outcome in the first inning to fuel me in the right way, and not be pissed off about it, but I feel like I use that to kind of give me a little bit of an edge and a little bit more focus.”

Bybee’s start didn’t get off on the right foot, as he was responsible for four baserunners — including the righty’s first two walks issued this season — and two earned runs in his first inning of work. A wild pitch and passed ball from catcher Matthew Graveline (Ohio State) didn’t help, and before they knew it, the Braves were in a 2-0 hole after the first with Bybee already at 31 pitches.

But he bounced back in a big way in the second and didn’t look back, retiring the Commodores in order twice and allowing four baserunners through the remainder of his five-inning outing. Mainly using his fastball and cutter later on, Bybee picked up three strikeouts and limited the damage following his forgettable opening inning.

“[Bybee settled in] last game as well,” field manager Scott Landers said. “I didn’t think he had his great stuff tonight, but he really did battle through. [He] got his pitch count up a little bit, but he did a great job.”

After falling behind by two, Bourne’s offense had an opportunity to battle back in the second. Infielder Braden Holcomb (Vanderbilt) slapped a single into right, outfielder Landyn Vidourek (Cincinnati) walked, and outfielder Isaiah Jackson reached on a pitch clock violation to load the bases with two outs. But outfielder Chris Stanfield (Auburn) grounded out, and the Braves came up empty-handed.

It wasn’t the last grade-A opportunity Landers’ squad found itself in possession of, either. Just an inning later, three straight two-out walks again juiced the bases. Things ended nearly identical to the second frame; a groundout from Vidourek again stranded three runners.

“We left the bases loaded and first and second in the first three innings, bases loaded twice,” Landers said. “If you don’t score there, those are your chances, and we squandered [them]. We did fight back, but it’s tough going right now. We’ve got to figure out how to battle and get tougher and get a win.”

In the fourth, however, Graveline provided his teammates a chance they couldn’t possibly blunder, slamming a fly ball into center field and turning on the afterburners for a triple. With one out, Stanfield knocked a sacrifice fly into right that drove in Graveline and cut the Falmouth lead to 2-1.

Graveline seemingly wasn’t content with his performance until he brought his team all the way back, though. With Vidourek reaching on a fielder’s choice before stealing second in the sixth, Graveline struck a ground ball into center field for an RBI single, tying the game at two.

However, Falmouth returned to the driver’s seat in the seventh courtesy of infielder Dylan Carey’s (Nebraska) bases-loaded, two-RBI single off of righty Brayden Risedorph (Indiana), giving his team a lead it didn’t relinquish.

Pivotal sequence

While Bybee settled in for the most part after his shaky first inning, he found himself in a jam during the fifth — his last inning of work.

Infielder Isaiah Barkett (Stetson) led off the inning with a line drive into center, and after two consecutive outs that advanced him to third, infielder Luke Gaffney (Clemson) drew a walk and stole second. Infielder Trent Caraway (Oregon State) then drew a walk to load the bases.

However, Bybee escaped the inning by forcing outfielder Jayson Jones (Arkansas) into a groundout. After the frame ended, the Kansas native walked back to the dugout with a grin on his face, knowing he just averted a major crisis in his final inning of work.

“There’s two outs with the bases loaded, and so there’s nowhere to put anybody now,” Bybee said. “So it was kind of a long process of working around some guys and getting the right guys at the plate… I was kind of excited [when I got the groundout] because I didn’t see the inning going that way, but I got out of it.”

Hitter of the Game — Matthew Graveline

One of two catchers on the Braves’ roster, Graveline doesn’t play every day, splitting time with Adonys Guzman (Arizona).

However, he’s been a solid option behind the plate so far, logging two hits in five games. But on Thursday, he put the Braves’ offense on his back.

Graveline started his day with a popout but picked up a leadoff triple in the fourth to put Bourne in prime position to score its first run of the game. That was achieved two outs later, as Stanfield drove him in with a sacrifice fly.

He next found himself at the plate during the top of the sixth with Vidourek on second. Graveline connected on the fourth pitch of the at-bat, which landed almost squarely in the middle of the zone, for an RBI single to tie the game.

“He had some good swings, he had some bad swings,” Landers said. “He controlled the pitching staff, he had a big knock when we needed one to tie it up. He played outstanding behind the dish.”

A look ahead

Thursday’s loss doesn’t affect the Braves’ position in the standings — they remain in fourth place in the Cape Cod Baseball League’s West Division with a 3-7-1 record — but they are now only a half-game ahead of last-place Falmouth and three games behind the Hyannis Harbor Hawks for third. Bourne will return to Doran Park on Friday to host the Cotuit Ketteleers, who are second in the West at 7-4.

Bourne’s listed starter for Friday’s game is Zane Adams (Alabama). The southpaw owns a 1.50 ERA, 0.67 WHIP and five strikeouts in six innings across two appearances, last pitching on June 21 at Falmouth in a five-inning start that saw him allow one run and fan five.

Adams will likely face right-hander Thatcher Hurd (LSU), who is entering his senior season. Hurd has yet to start a game on the Cape but logged a 6.55 ERA and 56 Ks in 44 frames in the spring.

First pitch will be at 6 p.m.

Notes

With a knock on Thursday, infielder Jack Penney (Notre Dame) extended his hitting streak to four games… Infielder Camden Kozeal (Vanderbilt) has recorded hits in five straight contests, notching a single… Holcomb’s single extended his hitting streak to three games, and he is tied for the third-most hits on the Cape with 12… Outfielder Davis Gillespie (Southern Mississippi) is also on a seven-game hitting streak… Outfielder Ethan Conrad (Wake Forest) has recorded hits in three straight games and has a total of five hits during that span… Graveline’s triple in the fourth is Bourne’s first triple of the season… Drawing six walks on Thursday, Bourne remains atop the league in that category with 23… The Braves also have the second-most stolen bases in the CCBL with 17.