The last time that Orleans won in a walk-off was against Cotuit on Opening Day. Thirty-five games later against Yarmouth-Dennis, Elijah Ickes delivered nothing short of a miracle with another Birds walk-off.

Once he reached home plate, Ickes was met by his teammates, who dumped a bucket of water on him as they celebrated Orleans’ 2-1 win over the Red Sox.

“I was kind of anxiously waiting,” Ickes said when asked if he knew right away if it was going to be a home run. "I know I got it OK, and I just watched it the whole way, and I was just thankful for it to go out.”

Wednesday night’s game was nothing short of a punch-for-punch battle, as the only two home runs came off the first pitch of the game and nine innings later, the final pitch.

“It was an exciting game,” Ickes said. “I felt like the whole game was a really close match. I feel like our pitchers did a hell of a job out there, keeping us in the game. Robbie started the inning well, and I just tried to keep it going.”

It didn’t take too long for Yarmouth-Dennis to get on the board. In fact, it only took one Jake Bean (Louisville) pitch for the Red Sox to notch a homer.

Leading off for the Birds, Bean locked eyes with Brayden Dowd (Southern California). Winding up, Dowd made contact with the ball. Just from the crack of the bat, the fans at Eldredge Park knew that it was out of there.

And that’s exactly what happened, as the ball soared over the head of Anthony Potestio (UC San Diego) and over the fence, as the Y-D dugout roared with celebration.

While the Birds swiftly closed out the inning, that was not the way Orleans wanted to start against the second-ranked Red Sox.

The bottom of the first was rather promising for Orleans, though. And the offensive charge was led by one familiar face — Tyler Myatt (Tennessee). After logging his third home run of the season Tuesday night, Myatt’s bat did not go silent.

Off a line-drive single to left field, Myatt ignited a spark within the Birds' offense. And it seemed like the next batter, Alejandro Garza (Cal Poly) was taking the torch. With a single of his own, Garza gave life to the Birds.

But that soon came crashing down after two consecutive groundouts from Ickes and Potestio.

After a walk and a single to start the second, it looked like the script was rewriting itself. When Will Baker (Georgia Tech) stole third, that only intensified Y-D’s chances of making yet another dent on the scoreboard.

The Birds would not go down without a fight, though. After Thomas McAndrews (Fordham) reached on a fielder’s choice, Ryan Kucherak (Northwestern) came up big for Orleans.

Firing it to catcher Robbie Lavey (George Washington), Baker was ruled out at home while the home crowd went crazy from the play.

The noise only grew during the next play. Making a far-reaching, ESPN Top 10-worthy catch, Ickes capped off the inning with the ball in his glove.

The bottom of the second was no different for the Birds offensively. While Dawson Bryce (Charlotte) started the inning with a walk, he was ruled out almost seconds later after trying to steal second.

A Michael Crossland (UC San Diego) hit was the next best thing to happen for Orleans. Crossland’s ground-rule double was almost out of a textbook, curving to left field.

However, Kucherak, who set the program single-season home run record at Northwestern with 18 runs, was unable to get anything started after being called out on strikes.

Still knotted at 1-0, Orleans’ defense stood strong in the top of the third. Holding Y-D to a 1-2-3 inning, Bean shut down the Red Sox’s chance of making a dent in the scoreboard as he sent them back to the dugout almost immediately.

The third time was not the charm for the Birds, either, as Brady Hamilton (Wichita State) took notes. In a pitching duel with Bean, Hamilton delivered his own 1-2-3 inning for his squad.

The next member of the Birds' pitching staff took the mound in the top of the fourth with two outs on the board. Cole Tryba (UC Santa Barbara) made it known exactly why he was selected as a pitcher for the CCBL East All-Star team when he sent Nick Costello (UC San Diego) back to the dugout.

Tryba’s performance was nothing short of effortless, ending the night with a 1.07 ERA. In his 5 1/3 innings pitched, Tryba posted five strikeouts, allowing just one hit from the Red Sox.

“I was really just trying to work on getting ahead in the count and establishing my off-speed,” Tryba said. “Getting ahead with the fastball really helped me tonight.”

Nothing changed for the next three innings, as neither squad was able to generate any more hits.

It wasn’t until the bottom of the seventh inning with one out for the Birds when things started to shake up.

The Hill was sent into shock after Bryce flew the ball beyond the fence. But before fans could cheer, Nick Costello (UC San Diego) made the play of his life, stretching over the fence and coming up with the heroic grab.

Instead of earning its first home run of the night, Orleans remained stagnant.

The ninth inning was when everything changed.

Lavey led the comeback with a ground-ball single to center field, as the energy shifted at Eldredge.

And Ickes recognized that. Launching the ball to left-center field, the crowd watched in unison as the ball soared over the outfielders.

Just like that, Ickes had done it. Storming the field, celebrations enfolded in almost every direction, as Orleans took the matchup, 2-1, solidifying a win when it matters most.

“I feel like we got a great vibe on this team,” Ickes said. “We just love playing for each other and thankful to have such a great group of guys.”