Matt Liberman
Syracuse University
June 23, 2017

BREWSTER – In a 12-run offensive explosion, it’s easy to lose sight of the fact that at one point Friday evening, Cotuit trailed 4-0 in the bottom of the first inning with only one out.

That drought continued until the offense erupted, scoring a dozen runs in four innings. The Kettleers unloaded the runs they have been due the past four games. Through five innings, Cotuit still trailed 4-3, but a junior reliever from Wofford College held the Brewster offense, that has been so powerful recently, at bay.

Adam Scott (Wofford) played the role of unsung hero in Cotuit’s first win since June 18. The lefty reliever threw 4.2 scoreless innings to keep the game within striking distance. His performance ultimately led to a 12-run rally for the Kettleers (5-4), ending in a 12-6 road victory over the Whitecaps (4-3-1). Cotuit remains the only team to beat Brewster in 2017.

“If you have an MVP of the game,” Cotuit head coach Mike Roberts said, “it was definitely Adam Scott.”

Brian Rapp (Boston College) started his first game after just being added to the Kettleers’ roster, but Brewster shelled the B.C. junior. Rapp only managed to get one out, giving up three hits, three walks and four runs before being run off the field.

With an already depleted bullpen from an exhausting schedule, Roberts summoned the lefty Scott, who had previously appeared in two games, giving up one run in each and taking the loss against Bourne on June 20.

Down 4-0, with one out and runners on second and third, Scott forced a shallow flyout to left field and a 6-3 ground ball to escape an already harmful inning that had the potential to turn disastrous.

“They were punching us in the mouth early on,” Scott said. “It was just nice to keep it where it’s at and let us play.”

Scott surged through the next four innings, finishing with four strikeouts and only three hits allowed. The junior worked well mixing in off-speed pitches with his fastball. Of late, the Cotuit bullpen has struggled to keep pitches low and fastballs inside, but Scott did exactly that, forcing groundouts, shallow flyouts and punching out hitters to top it off.

By the time Chase Shugart (Texas) took over in the sixth, the Kettleers led 9-4 with Scott in position to earn his first win of the season.

“For him to come in and do that,” John Cresto said, “it’s game-changing.”

Scott received some help from the offense, particularly Cresto who led Cotuit with three hits and four runs batted in. All three hits came in the form of doubles. Zack Kone (Duke) continued his hot streak as well, adding a two-run home run in the fifth inning.

While Cotuit showered the field with line drives and a home run, Scott earned the win and lowered his earned run average to 2.07

.“I’m just doing my job,” Scott said. “I was just trying to keep the game in check and give our hitters a chance.”

The Kettleers return to action at home tomorrow against the Y-D Red Sox (6-1-1). Cotuit is 0-1 this season against Y-D, losing 5-3 on the road on June 22.

Game Notes

• Griffin Conine (Duke) continues to tear the seams off the ball. The Duke right fielder is currently leading the Cape League in batting, clipping .472 this season. He also leads the league with 17 hits and has recorded a hit in every game this season.
• It’s hard to believe anyone might be putting up a better season than Conine, but his college teammate, Kone, is right up there. He now has 1 home run, 8 RBIs, 5 stolen bases and is hitting .387 from the dish with an on-base percentage of .441.
• 

  John Cresto

  Cresto’s three doubles against Brewster put him atop the league standings with six doubles on the season. He has done this in only eight games. That marks the lowest number of games for any player with at least four doubles.

• As a team, Cotuit leads the league or is tied for the league lead in hits (83), doubles (17), triples (3) and total bases (121).
• One of the things that Cotuit has struggled with in previous seasons is errors. But this year the Kettleers lead the league with a .990 fielding percentage and a league-low three errors.
• Chandler Avant (Alabama) made his first start against Brewster. Hitting in the designated hitter’s position, Avant finished 1-5 with a double and a run scored.
• Every single hitter in the lineup reached base against Brewster. The only person who didn’t record a hit was Mitch Bigras (Boston College) who laid down two sacrifice bunts during the game to advance runners, and stole a base after drawing a walk in the second inning. Thus, every single hitter finished with a quality at-bat in the game.

mdliberm@syr.edu