Nick Costello (UC San Diego) made the catch of the summer in Y-D’s 2-1 loss to Orleans on Wednesday when he went halfway over the right field wall to rob Dawson Bryce (Charlotte) of a two-run homer in the seventh inning.

Wednesday’s showdown between Y-D and the Firebirds was a nail-biter throughout, with runs coming at a premium. Brady Hamilton (Wichita State) and Chris Downs (Cal Poly) cruised on the mound for Y-D with 7 2/3 scoreless innings; however, that line wouldn’t have been possible without Costello’s heroics in right field.

With Y-D ahead, 1-0, in the seventh inning, Downs walked Anthony Potestio (UC San Diego) to bring the go-ahead run to the plate. In the following at-bat, Bryce capped off an eight-pitch battle with Downs by driving a fastball deep to right-center field. Costello went on a full-out sprint as soon as Bryce made contact, perfectly timing his leap at the wall to snag the ball and rob Bryce of a go-ahead home run.

“Honestly, off the bat I lost it because it was during that time of night where if it gets above the lights, you honestly can’t even see it,” Costello said. “I just kind of took off running, hoping that I would get to a spot; I found a spot on the fence, and he left it just short enough for me to reach over there.”

Not only did Costello make the incredible catch, but he also had the presence of mind to immediately throw the ball back to first base to try and double off Potestio. Although Potestio just barely beat the throw to the bag, the toss from Costello was right on line and added another element to the unbelievable play.

“My parents were out in center field, so in the presence of the moment, all I hear is them yelling,” Costello said. “So, I didn’t even have time to think about it, I just chucked [the ball] in and hoped for the best. It didn’t get there, but it’s alright, I’ll live with it.”

The robbery wasn’t the only impressive play that Costello made in the field during Wednesday’s game. With two outs and a runner on second in the sixth inning, Costello made a stellar running grab down the right field line on a fly ball from Elijah Ickes (Hawaii) to preserve Y-D’s one-run advantage.

“It was another opposite-field hitting guy, and I was just kind of expecting the ball,” Costello said. “It was slicing away from me because he hit it well, and I just took a good angle and got to the right part of the corner in the outfield.”

Costello is still searching to find a groove offensively this summer, as he is 2-for-25 at the plate after a hitless night against the Firebirds. However, he proved on Wednesday that he can still make a huge impact for Y-D with his glove.

“You can only do so much with the bat in some games; I pieced a couple of balls up, felt good at the plate, but obviously had an 0-4 day,” Costello said. “When you make plays like that, you can keep your team in the game. It just feels like you’re contributing in some way, and that’s all it’s about.”

Although Y-D was unable to hold on to the slim 1-0 lead after Ickes launched a walk-off, two-run home run in the ninth inning, the show that Costello put on defensively won’t be forgotten anytime soon.

Costello and the rest of Y-D will look to respond from the defeat when they return home to face Harwich in a key division matchup at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday.