After winning seven of its last eight regular season games, the No. 1 seeded Orleans was unable to carry that same success into the first game of the playoffs against the last-seeded Yarmouth-Dennis tonight.

While sparks of a comeback seemed plausible in the bottom of the ninth inning, none of them led to anything for the Birds, as the Red Sox took the first game of the series 4–1.

In front of a packed Eldredge Park, Y–D’s bats did not go silent. Instead, they lit up. The same cannot be said for Orleans, though.

Even though the Birds tallied seven hits on the night, only a run came from it. The opposite rang true for Y–D, who off eight hits, notched four runs against the Birds’ pitching staff.

But Orleans doesn’t seem too fazed when asked what they needed to fix going into tomorrow night’s matchup at Red Wilson Field. After clinching the division for the first time since 2017, the Birds know what they are capable of achieving.

“Get the bats rolling,” pitcher Billy Morris (D’Youville) said. “I’m not worried about the bats getting hot. I know we have been hot coming up to the playoffs, and I’m just not worried about it.”

It didn’t take long for the Red Sox to do just that. In fact, half of their runs on the night came in the first inning alone.

After posting a Jayce Tharnish (St. Bonaventure) single off Jake Bean’s (Louisville) first pitch, it was clear that Y–D wanted to make a statement on Tuesday night.

Dropping six of their last eight games, the Red Sox proved that the playoffs are the prime opportunity for a clean slate.

A fielding error by Dawson Bryce (Charlotte) and a Y–D walk did not make matters any better for the Birds, as Y–D came out explosive.

That only intensified when a throwing error by Elijah Ickes (Hawaii) allowed a Jordan Crosland (Maryland) groundout to bring home both Tharnish and Armando Briseno (Long Beach State). Taking an early 2–0 edge, the first few plays couldn’t have gone any better for the Red Sox.

And these offensive errors wouldn’t stop for Orleans. They were the name of the game for the No. 1 seeded team in the contest.

Plaguing Orleans when it mattered most, the Birds had four errors on the night, while the Red Sox had none.

Tharnish only stretched the Red Sox’s lead to three runs in the top of the second. Off a force out, Connor Capece (Creighton) made it back to home plate, as the Red Sox’s dugout erupted with roars of excitement.

However, the third time was the charm for Orleans, thanks to Landon Hairston (Arizona State). In just his third game for the Birds, the Sun Devil made his mark almost instantly in front of a packed home crowd.

With two outs in the third inning, all eyes were on Hairston as he stepped up to bat. Fortunately, for Orleans, Hairston answered.

Driving an 0–2 sinker just over the wall of right field, Hairston’s first homer in the Cape cut Y–D’s lead down to two runs—igniting a sense of hope among both players and fans.

“It was pretty cool, and I wasn’t really expecting to get one tonight,” Hairston said. “Always good to get the first run out of the way.”

And the energy on the Hill after the homer did not disappoint, according to Hairston.

“It’s awesome,” Hairston said. “I never expected it to be like this. I heard that Orleans had a good atmosphere and that’s kind of why I picked it.”

But that would be the only dent on the scoreboard that the Birds made on Tuesday night.

It wouldn’t be the last for the Red Sox. Off two consecutive Y–D singles, the ball was rolling for the Red Sox.

While Bean and Robbie Lavey’s (George Washington) heroics worked together to get Ryan Niedzwiedz (Southern Illinois-Edwardsville) out at home, that wouldn’t be enough.

With just one out on the board, the Birds propelled Y–D to their fourth run of the night off a Crosland fielder’s choice.

Matters only looked worse for Orleans off another fielding error a few plays later. However, the Birds were able to cap off the inning with no further damage.

Taking the mound in the top of the sixth, Morris was tasked with damage control. And he delivered.

Allowing just two hits off zero runs, Morris logged two strikeouts on the night.

“I just came out there and did what I could to have a shot at us winning the game,” Morris said after the loss.

While everything started to click for the Birds defensively, the same couldn’t be said for their offense.

After two consecutive Anthony Potestio (UC San Diego) and Bryce singles, Lavey had a chance to make a dent on the scoreboard. But he was unable to do just that, being called out on strikes when the Birds needed a sign of life.

The next two innings were a punch for punch defensive battle. It wasn’t until the bottom of the ninth when Orleans finally came out swinging.

Hit by a Tyler Pitzer (South Carolina) pitch, Kai Wagner (Northern Colorado) made his way to first.

Then Javar Williams (Wake Forest) proved exactly why he was named the Castleberry Coaches’ Award, nailing a double on a ground ball to a sweet spot in left field.

And the Firebirds’ fans liked what they saw. With Tyler Myatt (Tennessee) and Alejandro Garza (Cal Poly) next, there was a lingering question of whether another walk-off could happen.

Unfortunately, for the Birds, that never happened as Myatt struck out swinging and a Garza flyout concluded the game almost immediately after it was hit.

The Birds aren’t done just yet, though. With their season on the line, Orleans needs a win against the Red Sox tomorrow at 4 p.m. at Red Wilson Field. Whether or not Y–D sweeps will soon be decided. But it won’t be an easy task for the Red Sox.

“We just have to keep at it,” Hairston said. “We are a good ball club, and we know it. We know what we are capable of doing, and hopefully we will get the outcome that we want.”