The last time that Elijah Ickes (Hawaii) notched a home run in Orleans was in front of his grandparents who visited all the way from Hawaii. While it may have been a little less special this time around, that all changed on Sunday night, when he delivered another homer in front of packed Eldredge Park.

“I felt like I put two good swings on before that,” Ickes said. “I felt like with two strikes, I was just trying to simplify it down, put the ball into play, and good results happened, so I’m thankful for that.”

Even though the Birds were unable to get anything started offensively throughout the first three innings against the Commodores, Isaiah Magdaleno (Hawaii) took the helm for Orleans as the leadoff pitcher.

During Magdaleno’s 4.1 IP, he logged six strikeouts, allowing just one run off of five hits.

It was Ickes that led the offensive charge for the Birds after a Robbie Lavey (George Washington) line drive single to center field.

Proving exactly why he was selected to the CCBL East All-Star team, Ickes made contact with the ball, sending the fly ball over the heads of the Falmouth outfielders, as it sailed over the fence of Eldredge.

As the crowd began to roar, Ickes successfully met Lavey at home—earning the Birds the first two runs on the night.

That same rhythm carried over for Orleans in the top of the fourth inning. Magdaleno held the Commodores to a 1–2–3 inning, almost instantly sending Falmouth back to the dugout.

With Mac Stiffler (West Virginia) serving as the leadoff pitcher for the Commodores, he allowed a Dawson Bryce (Charlotte) walk. Utilizing the speed that manager Kelly Nicholson has consistently praised this season, Bryce wasn’t done just yet, stealing second.

Anthony Potestio (UC San Diego) followed suit, as Potestio also walked.

Things seemingly unraveled for Falmouth’s defense as Javar Williams (Wake Forest) registered a single of his own off a ground ball to center field. His college teammate, Antonio Morales (Wake Forest) was unable to come up with the catch on Williams’ hit.

With bases loaded, all eyes were on Alejandro Garza (Cal Poly).

Fortunately, for Orleans, a Garza walk helped the Birds, as Bryce walked back home—bringing Orleans their third run of the night.

Making a pitching change, the Commodores then capped off the inning after Lavey struck out.

Unlike the earlier innings, the top of the fifth was rather promising for Falmouth. Off Magdaleno’s first pitch, Edward Yamin IV (Louisiana State) earned a ground ball single.

With Reece Moroney batting, Yamin IV advanced to second on a balk. After a single and two Orleans’ pitching changes, the Commodores finally made a dent in the scoreboard off a Carl Schmidt (California) single, bringing Yamin IV home.

Up by just two runs, the Birds knew they would need to make more of an impact on the scoreboard before getting themselves too comfortable.

Bryce did just that. Doubling on a line drive to right field, Bryce brought Ickes home for the second time that night.

Fortunately, for the Birds, things were just getting started, as Williams made the crowd go crazy with a dominant triple on a fly ball that curved to right field. With another two runs on the board, Orleans took a 6–1 lead over the Commodores.

“I was just thinking about staying inside of it and just passing the stake to the next guy,” Williams said about his triple.

Williams went on to have two RBIs and two hits on the night.

“I think I’m just on time right now and just staying inside the ball well,” Williams said about his recent performance. “I just think sometimes you need to be out there a lot and just get a bunch of at bats to kind of get a rhythm going.”’

That rhythm continued well into the bottom of the seventh, when the Birds earned another two runs after both a passed ball and a fielding error.

On the defensive side, the Birds held Falmouth to just one run in the top of the fifth, as they cruised past Falmouth 8–1 and continued their two-game winning streak.

“We’re all having fun together and momentum is a huge part of baseball, especially in the post season, so hopefully we can just keep this going, keep having fun, and make a run,” Williams said.