
The last time that the Birds took on the Harbor Hawks, Orleans ended in a 8–8 tie in the bottom of the tenth inning.
Friday night’s game at McKeon Park told a different story, as the Birds came out victorious this time around, defeating Hyannis 6–2.
Going into the matchup, the odds were certainly in the Harbor Hawks’ favor.
While Orleans stood last in the CCBL East, the Harbor Hawks remained first in the CCBL West.
However, that didn’t change the Birds from delivering a much-needed away win.
“We did the four phases: we put the ball in play, we played well defensively, we pitched, and we ran the bases well,” manager Kelly Nicholson said.
Holding Hyannis to a 1–2–3 inning as the Birds’ leadoff pitcher, JT Raab (Georgetown) came out dominant for the Birds in his Friday night outing. In his 3.1 IP, Raab notched two strikeouts and allowed one run off five hits.
It wasn’t until the third inning that the first runs were on the board for either team. And, fortunately for Orleans, it started with a Kyle Johnson (Virginia) double.
Nailing a fly ball to left field, Johnson brought Jonathan Mendez (UC Santa Barbara) home and advanced Dawson Bryce (Charlotte) to third.
Giving the Birds an early 1–0 lead, it provided exactly the boost that Orleans needed going forward.
Javar Williams (Wake Forest) then came up big with an RBI off a sacrifice bunt, scoring Bryce on the play.
Just like that, the Birds had edged past the Harbor Hawks by two runs.
Hyannis generated some steam in the fourth, though. Gabe Camacho (UC San Diego) led the charge with a single off a line-drive to start the frame. After a Raab wild pitch advanced Camacho to third, things started to align for the Harbor Hawks.
That only intensified when Hyannis cut the Birds’ lead in half of a Jeff Lougee (Duke) triple.
With just a 2–1 Orleans lead, it was anything but comfortable.
The Birds’ pitching staff did not let up though, shutting down any Hyannis opportunity to get on the board.
“It got started with JT Raab, he got us off to a good start, threw the ball really well,” Nicholson said. “Truman Pauley came in and he threw the ball really well. Foley threw the ball well and Murdock threw the ball well.”
The sixth inning is when both squads really started to heat up.
Thanks to Elijah Ickes (Hawaii), that became a reality for the Birds. Off a ground ball double to left field, Ickes ignited Orleans’ offense.
After two consecutive Robbie Lavey (George Washington) and Mendez walks, Cashel Dugger (UCLA) made a dent in the scoreboard. Notching an RBI off a sacrifice fly, Dugger brought Orleans’ lead back to two runs, scoring Ickes.
Lavey now found himself back at home plate after a Tyler August (Liberty) wild pitch, as Orleans took a 4–1 lead.
Hyannis wouldn’t go down without a fight though, as a Devin Mitchell (Florence-Darlington Tech JC) homer sparked a chance of a Harbor Hawks’ comeback.
With Ethan Foley (California) and Steele Murdock (UC San Diego) capping it off for the Birds, they held the Harbor Hawks to a combined four hits and zero runs in their combined 2.4 IP.
Eventually, the possibility of a comeback would all come crashing down for Hyannis.

With two outs on the board, all eyes were on Luke Nixon (NC State). Delivering his first home run in the Cape League, Nixon hammered a two-run homer to right field, meeting Anthony Potestio (UC San Diego) at home plate.
“Luke Nixon gave us a little bit of breathing room with that home run,” Nicholson said.
That would be the last score of the game, as the Harbor Hawks were unable to get anything going in the bottom of the ninth.
“I was just looking for a fastball, last out, got the pitch, and just got a pretty good swing on it,” Nixon said. “It means a lot to get a win tonight, coming to Hyannis, we tied here last time, we got a nice win under our belt on the road.”
One noticeable difference in Friday night’s win was the absence of first baseman Michael O’Shaughnessy (Georgia), as Bryce took the helm for Orleans.
“He’s going to be our first basemen while Mike O’Shaughnessy is gone, and Shaggy may not come back if he gets drafted” Nicholson said.
In fact, Nicholson had nothing but praise for Bryce.
“Dawson Bryce is a really good athlete,” Nicholson said. “We are super fortunate to have Dawson Bryce. We can put a shortstop at first base, and he is big, tall, and he’s athletic. We are more than comfortable with DB manning first base.”