By Courtney Swift
Kettleers Media Intern
August 13, 2012
The team farewell. / Photo by Joe Cavanaugh
COTUIT – The Kettleers season ended in a heartbreaking 6-4 loss Sunday. The Kettleers led through six, but the Braves pulled ahead in the eighth, and Cotuit couldn’t come back.
Dusty Isaacs threw the game of his life. / Photo by Joe Cavanaugh
Dusty Isaacs (Georgia Tech) threw the game of his life against the Braves. He was perfect through four innings and held Bourne scoreless through six. He allowed just three hits in his seven innings of work. He threw 69 pitches striking out six and never walking a batter. The one run he allowed was the game tier in the seventh.
Cotuit held a 1-0 lead through six innings before Bourne came back. Patrick Biondi (Michigan) walked to lead off the second inning before stealing second and scoring on a soft single to left by Jacob May (Coastal Carolina).
Isaacs didn’t come out for the eighth inning as reliever Cameron Griffin (Stetson) took the mound. Griffin threw 1/3 of an inning allowing two runs on two hits before submariner Ryan Connolly (Coastal Carolina) came in the game. Connolly gave up two runs of his own when LJ Mazzilli (UConn) hit a three run homer in the eighth with two outs (one of the runs was credited to Griffin). Bourne led 5-1 heading into the bottom of the seventh.
Just when it looked like Cotuit’s season was over, sparkplugs Patrick Biondi (Michigan) and Tony Kemp (Vanderbilt) helped put the team almost back in it. Biondi hit an RBI single to bring in Mike Ford (Princeton), and then Kemp hit a two-run bomb just fair over the right field fence to bring the Kettleers within one run and put the score at 5-4.
Chad Green (Louisville) made the start for Bourne throwing six innings. He gave up one run on five hits before handing the game over to the Braves’ bullpen to hold the Kettleers off. Patrick Young (Villanova) got the win for Bourne, and John Farrell (William and Mary) recorded the save.
The Kettleers were awarded the President’s Cup prior to the playoffs for having the best record in the league (30-14) as well as the Western Division Cup for being the regular season Western Division Champions.
Players and families took a moment to say goodbye at the game’s end. They took pictures, signed autographs, and said their goodbyes. The Kettleers ended the playoffs 1-2. Bourne moves on to play Wareham in the Western Division Championship game. YD will host Orleans in the Eastern Division Championship.