by Courtney Swift
Kettleers Media Intern
July 6, 2012
COTUIT – Some late inning hits and outstanding relief pitching helped put the Kettleers on top Friday as they beat the Y-D Red Sox 7-4. Mike Ford’s (Princeton) 2 RBI single in the fifth proved to be the winning runs of the game, and a solid six-inning shutout by Cotuit’s bullpen stopped Y-D from scoring late.
Player of the Game, Daniel Aldrich, went 2-5 with 3 RBIs. (Photo by Joe Cavanaugh)
The Kettleers fell behind early, but only until it was their turn to bat. Player of the game, Daniel Aldrich (College of Charleston) hit his second homer in three days since coming to Cotuit. His bomb over the right field fence put the Kettleers on top 2-1 at the end of the first. “He’s made an immediate impact,” said coach Mike Roberts. “He’s the type of guy that can get you back in the ball game with one swing, which he did tonight.” Aldrich went 2-5 on the night with three RBIs.
Y-D eventually reclaimed a 4-3 lead after scoring three runs in the top of the third. Cotuit threatened in its half of the inning, but left the bases loaded. Both teams went down quietly in the fourth before Mike Ford came up to the plate for the Kettleers in the fifth. Ford hit an RBI single to score James Roberts (USC) and Patrick Biondi (Michigan) giving the Kettleers the 5-4 lead. Jacob May extended the lead in the eighth with a 2 RBI double to give the Kettleers some breathing room.
Jordan Smith (Western Carolina) and Brandon Bixler (Florida Gulf Coast) pitched three innings of shutout baseball before turning the ball over to closer Dan Slania (Notre Dame). The three pitched six innings of shutout relief giving up no hits with three walks and five strikeouts.
Biondi showed off his speed and may have made the play of the game for the Kettleers in the top of the eighth. After Slania gave up a lead off walk (started by Bixler), he recorded the next two outs looking to end the game with Y-D’s nine-man.
Wayne Taylor (Stanford) came in to pinch hit and drove a double to left-center field. But Biondi was able to cut off the hit and keep the runner at third from scoring. Slania had a much easier ninth sending the Red Sox down in order and finalizing Cotuit’s 7-4 win. “It was nice to come back after letting up a couple runs last week,” Slania said. “It was good to get those last three outs and do it with as little pitches as possible so I can come back pretty quick.”
The Kettleers will face off against Wareham Saturday at 7 p.m. The Kettleers sit at 9-10 on the season, and look to make it back to .500 against the Gatemen (10-9). On the injury front, Raph Rhymes (LSU) has a bone contusion on his ankle, but Coach Roberts said Tony Kemp (Vanderbilt) could be in the lineup again as soon as Saturday. For more postgame interviews, visit Official Kettleers on YouTube