Cotuit Kettleers Pick Up First Win of 2005 Versus Falmouth Commodores

Kettleers Even Record at 1-1-1 With Win Over Falmouth

June 18, 2005

By Megan Kerr, Asst. Web Editor

LOWELL PARK, COTUIT - Josh Johnson (Mississippi State) picked up his and the Kettleers' first win of 2005 by pitching 3 1/3 strong innings for Cotuit in relief of Jeff Manship (Notre Dame) Saturday night, striking out three and giving the Kettleers their first win of the season.
      Though the Falmouth Commodores struck first with a run in the top of the second off of Manship (six strikeouts and no walks), Cotuit responded in the bottom of the third and led from that point on.  Scoring eight runs over nine innings, the bats of the Kettleers paved the way for Cotuit's first win and gave Daniel Merkinlger (Seton Hall) of the Commodores his first loss of the season.
    Both starting pitchers struggled in the first inning, but were able to escape
with no runs scored after having men on third with only one out.  Manship
though, wasn't as lucky in the second when he was touched by the Commodores for one run.  After having given up a one out single to Brian Bocock (Stetson, 1 for four batting), it appeared Manship was going to get Bocock out when he caught him taking too big of a lead off of first base and threw over to the first
baseman.

      The resulting pickle should have been the second out, but the second
baseman tried to run him down, which allowed Bocock to make it back to first.
One steal and one single later, Brian scored, but what could have been a
disasterous mistake instead sparked the Kettleers, which was seen the next
inning whne they overtook the Commodores.
    Lino Mariot (Bloomfield, 2 for 4 batting) lead off the bottom of the third with
a single, and then Emeel Salem (Alabama, 0 for 2 batting) was hit by a pitch to
put runners on first and second with nobody out.  After a double steal by
Mariot and Salem, Shane Jordan (Stetson, 2 RBI) bunted in the first Cotuit run.
With runners on first and third, Todd Davison (Delaware, 3 RBI) laid down a  sacrifice bunt to put Cotuit ahead, and then with one out, Bryan Harris (LSU, 1
RBI) hit a sacrifice fly to get Jordan home.  At the end of the inning, Cotuit now led three to one and from that point forward they never relinquished that
lead.
    Cotuit scored two more runs in the fourth with RBI from Shane Jordan and Todd Davison, putting the Kettlers in a comfortable situation.  The Kettleers
completely dominated from the third inning on with their hot hitting and
excellent pitching.  The only other run that Falmouth was able to score occured
in the top of the sixth off of Josh Johnson when Mike Ambort (Lamar, 1 RBI)
doubled in a run with one out.  Cotuit added three more runs over the next two
inning, which put the Commodores in a desperate situation coming into the ninth
inning.  There would be no come back this time, for Chris Toneguzzi (Purdue, 1 strikeout) put the Commodores down in order in top of the ninth.
With the first win under their belt, the Kettleers will look to continue their hot hitting and winning ways when they head over to play in Hyannis tommorow.