Late Comeback Falls Short in Wednesday Loss to Mainers

By Jason Glick

LYNN, Mass. — Home games have treated the North Shore Navigators well lately. Ahead of Wednesday, they had won seven straight and 10 of their last 11 at home, going undefeated at Fraser Field so far in July.

Against the North Division-leading Sanford Mainers (22-11), home luck didn't go the Navigators' (17-16) way on Wednesday, as they narrowly fell 7-6 in New England Collegiate Baseball League action. The Navs trailed 7-3 in the bottom of the ninth, but rallied for three runs before falling just short.

Third baseman Simmi Whitehill (Monmouth) led North Shore's bats, going 2-for-3 with an RBI. Catcher Aidan Sengenberger (Seton Hall) also batted in two runs, and designated hitter Anderson French (Dallas Baptist) added one on a triple. 

Right-hander Ethan Hunt (Southern New Hampshire) started and struck out three in as many innings. His future Penmen teammate, left-hander Cameron Keaveney (Southern New Hampshire) anchored the middle innings, striking out six over four scoreless frames.

The Mainers jumped in front in the first, as left fielder Jack Tate's (St. John's) triple to right scored first baseman Steven Kraus (Binghamton).

Sanford took a 3-0 lead in the second. Shortstop Albert De La Rosa (Maine) singled to left, scoring right fielder Nater Wachter (UConn). Second baseman Brian Connolly (Rhode Island) brought home center fielder Antonio Morales (Maryland) with a double.

The Navs responded in the bottom of the frame. Second baseman Tyler Shulman (Harvard) was hit by a pitch, stole second and cut the deficit to two on Whitehill's single to right. During the third, Hunt cleansed the Mainers in four batters.

Left fielder Jack Rickheim (Harvard) singled to begin the bottom of the third and stole second. At the top of the fourth, Sanford regained a three-score advantage on Morales' second run. Still, in his Navigators debut, right-handed pitcher Brock Bullinger (Central Alabama CC) tossed a strikeout. During the latter half, Shulman singled and advanced to second on Whitehill's walk.

Keaveney had a dominant fifth inning, striking out three. North Shore scored a pair of runs in the bottom half. That began with shortstop Hudson Ellis (Oral Roberts) reaching first on a one-out error and Byfield native center fielder Hunter Kingsbury's (Bryant) single up the middle. 

The pair advanced two bases, with Ellis scoring on catcher Aidan Sengenberger's (Seton Hall) single to left. Kingsbury stole home as part of a double steal to make it 4-3. North Shore finished with two runners on base after French walked. 

The momentum stayed intact during the sixth and seventh, as Sanford exited 1-2-3 both times against Keaveney. Although the Mainers loaded the bases in the top of the eighth, the lefty stayed composed, striking out two more. At the bottom of the stanza, Sengenberger walked and Shulman was hit by a pitch. Whitehill loaded the bases on a single, but to no avail.

Sanford extended its lead to four during the ninth. First, Tate hit a single up the middle to score Connolly. Then, designated hitter Domenico Tozzi (Coastal Carolina) homered to center to make it 7-3.

North Shore nearly accomplished the improbable in the bottom of the ninth. Rickheim walked, Ellis singled, and the tandem stole second and third before Rickheim scored on Sengenberger's sacrifice fly. French tripled to right center, scoring Ellis, and he scored on a Mainers miscue to make it 7-6. Still, the miraculous effort fell short.

The Navs return to action Friday at 6:30 p.m. when they travel to face the Vermont Mountaineers at Montpelier Recreation Field.