Riding the ultimate high of last night’s win, The Firebirds returned to Veterans Field to play the Anglers for the third time of 2026. Their third meeting of five was a critical one. An Orleans win would put the Firebirds only three games back of Chatham in the division with just over two weeks left to play.

While Orleans prepared for the game, the last few rounds of the MLB Draft flew by. Several Firebirds had their names called. Former rotation mainstays Justin LeGuernic, Chase Frey, and Jacob Haley were all selected.

LeGuernic was taken by the Kansas City Royals in the 6th round as the 180th pick. Haley went to the St. Louis Cardinals in the 11th round as pick 324. Frey was selected in the 5th round by the local Boston Red Sox with the 454th pick. Firebirds from previous years also flew off the board.

Besides players that were no longer on the Birds, one of the hottest players in the lineup got the call. Along with four UCSB pitchers, Corey Nunez (UCSB) was drafted on day two. He was pick 427 in the fourteenth round by the Chicago Cubs. His teammates celebrated with him in the visiting dugout.

Though everyone was thrilled, many were sad to see him go — namely the Gaucho Rowan Kelly (UCSB) and the UCLA Bruin Dominic Cadiz. The Firebirds would have to continue with one less West Coast face.

Orleans delivered payback for their loss at Veterans on July 4th. Powered by Bub Terrell (Auburn), who was a single shy of the cycle, the Firebirds offense was firing on all cylinders for a second straight day. Birds bats delivered five runs on nine hits. Adam Magpoc (SDSU) manufactured the winning run with his legs. Andrew Cutler (George Washington) continued his strong campaign as a starter. In the two most important games of the season to date, Orleans notched back to back wins.

Terrell took a moment to gather his thoughts post game as the Birds gathered their belongings and headed for the bus. Terrell had gone three for four with multiple hard hit balls.

“I was just trying to catch barrels today,” Terrell said. “That’s what you work for. We’ve got to keep that momentum going into Tuesday. We’ve had a lot of one run games this season. We’ve been a lot better in those situations lately.”

As a participant in the CCBL Home Run Contest, Terrell likes his chances to win it all. As someone who witnessed a Firebirds teammate and seven Auburn Tigers get selected by MLB clubs, he was excited to see the chaos unfold.

“I’m going to try and speak it into existence,” Terrell said of a Home Run Contest victory. “It was pretty cool to see [Nunez] get the call close up. He got to share that experience with his teammates, and that’s all you can ask for as a player. Auburn is just a powerhouse. That’s why I’m there — to become a better man and hopefully get my name called.”

The Firebirds got started against Anglers All-Star Max Luzarraga at 7:00 PM. In over 11 innings so far, he had pitched to an ERA of 0. He dominated Orleans out of the gate, collecting two strikeouts.

Andrew Cutler made his second start for Orleans in Chatham, solidifying his transition into the starter role. As Kelly Nicholson’s staff continues to deplete as the season goes on, Cutler will look to provide some consistency for Orleans. The first was a contact pitcher’s worst nightmare, as several seeing-eye singles lead to Chatham’s first run. It could have been much worse, as Cutler shimmied out of a bases loaded jam to end the inning.

The righty got some help from his defense in the second as Garrett Larsen (Yale) and Rowan Kelly made nice plays in the outfield. Rob Rispoli reached on an error, as new first baseman Bub Terrell couldn’t hold on to a poor throw. Rispoli stole second, but stopped there.

The Birds got a little traffic going in the third, but a slick 3-6-1 double play erased the Orleans runners. Cutler cruised, sitting Chatham hitters down without much trouble.

Terrell made loud contact in the fourth — driving an 106 mile an hour liner off the right field fence. Just a few feet higher and it would have been a tie game. Instead, despite Terrell moving to third on a balk and a professional at bat from Larsen, Terrell was stranded.

Cutler worked around the Anglers’ fourth hit for a clean fourth. His strategy of weak contact had been going his way aside from the first inning ambush.

Casey Cumiskey (SNHU) laid down a perfect bunt for the Birds second hit to start the fifth. The shortstop proceeded to swipe second. Last night’s man of the hour Jonathan Gomez (Stetson) dunked in a bloop hit, but Cumsikey held firm. Harmony wore one off the foot to load the bases. Kelly hit a sacrifice fly to left, but a tie was all the Birds would get.

Harrison Thayer (UTRGV) made his Firebirds debut in the fifth. Cutler had delivered another four strong innings. Junior Lauaki ambushed him, belting a solo homer to center. The Birds would need another come from behind win.

Terrell answered right back with some light tower power of his own. He nuked a baseball 416 feet to center, an absolute bomb that left the bat at 103 miles an hour and landed halfway up the hill beyond the fence.

Larsen worked a walk to follow, and Cumsikey moved him to third with a single, but no further runs would score.

Another Firebirds pitcher made their first appearance as Marcello Mastroianni (Duke) took the mound in the sixth. The lefty may not throw flames, but a funky delivery and nice breaking ball fooled two Anglers for an empty frame.

Joe Nottingham (Georgia) had the seventh. He walked his first man, then allowed a bunt single. An overthrow made it second and third with no outs. A shallow flyout and putout by Tyler Harmony from third to home got two outs and ended Nottingham’s night. Luca Alagheband (Harvard) took over, getting the first hitter to fly out and complete the Houdini act.

Bub’s big night continued in the top of the eighth. He tripled to right field, scoring Tyler Myatt (Tennessee). He was just a single shy of the cycle. Larsen’s first base knock of the year scored Terrell. The rally would end with Cumiskey grounding into a double play, but suddenly, Orleans was up 4-2.

Alagheband remained for the eighth. A leadoff double and hit batter immediately ended his night. Grant Garman (Hawaii) would have to put out the fire. After popping up two bunts in a row, Cameron Pruitt fouled off a third for an unconventional strikeout. Following that confounding decision, Larsen overran a ball in right field. A popout made it two down with the bases juiced.

Chatham’s most consistent hitter Rob Rispoli finally made the Birds pay. He ripped a single to left to score two and tie the game. It was a thriller at Veterans.

Adam Magpoc worked a leadoff walk in the ninth. He moved to second on a sacrifice from Harmony, and bolted to third for a steal. A wild pitch was enough to score him. The Birds needed three outs for a crucial rivalry win.

Garman held strong. He worked around two walks to slam the door on Chatham in dramatic fashion. Orleans was 2-1 against the Anglers with two more contests to play. The past two games have proved one thing for certain: don’t count the Birds out.

Orleans has the day off on Monday before traveling to Wareham to take on the Gatemen on Tuesday.