Harwich Walks-Off Brewster To Win Division Series

HARWICH – A sacrifice bunt that led to a throwing error brought in the winning run in game three Thursday of the East Division Series for the Harwich Mariners, who walked-off the Brewster Whitecaps to take the series.

 Tied 5-5 in the bottom of the ninth with two runners on, Patrick Fultz (Wright State) laid a sacrifice up the line that Brewster third baseman Maddox Mihalakis (Arizona) charged and shorthopped to first base. Second baseman Colton Coates (Louisiana Tech), covering the bag on the bunt, couldn’t pick the bounce and Harwich’s Ryan Gerety (Northeastern) rounded third and scored as the ball skipped away. 

With the 6-5 victory, the Mariners won the series and advanced to face the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox in the East Championship. The home team won every game of the series. Despite winning one fewer game than the Whitecaps in the regular season, the Mariners were tied with Brewster in points and had the head-to-head tiebreaker advantage.

In game one at Whitehouse Field, Whitecaps starter Duncan Marsten (Wake Forest) lasted just two and a third innings, allowing five runs on five hits and two walks while striking out none. A Jake Koonin (Princeton) solo home run in the eighth started a five-run inning for Harwich, who went on to win 10-2.

Mariners starter Troy Dressler (Wake Forest) allowed one run on three hits and struck out six in five innings. Scott Doran (Coastal Carolina) pitched the remainder, allowing one run in four innings to earn the save.

“When you get to this point of the season and you can save your bullpen, you get guys eating innings, it's going to be a big asset as far as we continue to move on, so both those guys pitched great,” Harwich manager Steve Englert said.

Brewster controlled game two from the jump, scoring four runs in the bottom of the first off Mariners starter Gianni Gambardella (Maine), who lasted just one and two-thirds innings. Mihalakis hit a first-inning two-run home run, and the Whitecaps added another two in the second to lead 6-0. Brewster starter Edwin Alicea (South Florida) allowed one run in five innings en route to the 7-3 win. 

The win-or-go-home game three back in Harwich was a true back-and-forth nailbiter. The Whitecaps scored first in the third, but the Mariners answered with three runs in the fourth and another in the fifth. Brewster starting left-hander Spencer Seid (UC San Diego) went three and a third innings, striking out seven but allowing three runs on four hits and three walks. 

Kyle Kipp (Boston College), a standout bullpen arm all summer for Brewster, entered the game in relief of Seid with the bases loaded and proceeded to surrender two runs on two wild pitches. Harwich led 4-1 after five innings.

In the sixth, the Whitecaps scored four, knocking out Harwich starter Olin Johnson (North Carolina). Tyler Muscar (James Madison) couldn’t finish the inning in relief of Johnson either, so with two on and two out, Harwich closer Christian Rodriguez (Florida) entered and escaped the jam to prevent further damage. He then finished the game with three more scoreless innings. 

 The Mariners responded to the Whitecaps’s big sixth with a run to make it 5-5 in the bottom of the inning. A walk followed by a Mihalakis error put Niko Brini (Wofford) at third base, and a Zach Bates (Illinois) wild pitch soon brought Brini in to score the tying run

Then in the bottom of the ninth, a single and a walk put two on for Harwich against Brewster’s Mitch Dye (Illinois). The call was made for Fultz to put down the sacrifice, which he bunted towards Mihalakis. 

“We had to do it,” Englert said. “I mean, he's one of our better hitters, but in that situation, we had to do that.”

Mihalikis was forced to make a tough play, and the ensuing throwaway was his second backbreaking error of the game. Gerety came from second to home, securing the series for Harwich against rival Brewster, who didn’t win a single game at the Mariners homefield this year.

“We came here to get the win. We got the win, and vibes are high,” Rodriguez said. “Everyone's pretty excited. It was a great, great team win.”