WEEKEND SWEEP: Mariners take commanding 2-0 lead in ITL Finals after two weekend victories
By Nick Curcuru Sports Editor
The Manchester Essex Mariners are one game away from the Intertown Twilight Baseball League championship.
The Mariners polished off a big weekend to open the best-of-five series against the top-seeded Hamilton Generals, taking both of the weekend games to open up a two-game lead in the series. Manchester Essex can clinch the ITL title with a win in Game 3 on Wednesday at Patton Park in Hamilton (5:30 p.m.). Hamilton, on the other hand, must win three straight games to capture its first title since 1992.
The Mariners got the weekend started with an 8-0 win in Game 1 on Saturday and followed it up with an 8-4 victory in Game 2 on Sunday.
"Everyone is seeing the ball well right now and we put together some good at bats over the first two games," Mariner manager Ryan Marques said. "It was a good weekend for us, we did what we needed to do on Saturday and Sunday."
The offense powered the Mariners to the win in Game 2 as the team belted 14 hits and came back from a slim, early deficit to take control of the series.
Trailing 4-3 after three innings, the Mariners went on to score five unanswered runs over their final four at bats to pull away.
Third baseman James McKenna, who went 4-for-4 on the afternoon, tied the game by singling in Kellen Field, who walked, to make it 4-4. Dylan Wilson scored what turned out to be the game winning run, coming in from third on an errant pickoff throw to first to give the Mariners at 5-4 lead.
The Mariners tacked onto that lead with a run in the fifth on a Caulin Rogers RBI single scoring Alex Ray. They put the game away in the sixth when Lars Arntsen singled in McKenna and then came in to score on a Ray single to cap the scoring at 8-4.
Field got the win on the mound for the Mariners, tossing 4 1/3 scoreless innings. He came on in the third with two runners on base and got out of the jam, then held the Generals offense in check for the next four innings, allowing only two hits while striking out three.
"Kellen really settled things down for us and shut them down," Marques said. "Hamilton is a good hitting team and they were swinging the bats well early but he came in and got some big outs."
The Mariners took a 2-0 lead right away in the first when Cory Burnham singled in E.J. Field (single) and then McKenna singled in Kellen Field. The Generals, however, got three in the top of the second to take the lead on RBI hits from Harrison O'Brien, Paul Horgan and Chris Huggett to make it 3-2.
The Mariners tied it up in the bottom of the frame on a Wilson RBI single, but the Generals went right back ahead, 4-3 on a base hit from Sal Guarino.
Manchester Essex got the series started with a shutout victory in Game 1 on Saturday, its third straight postseason win via shutout.
Rusty Tucker quieted the Generals bats, tossing six innings of shutout ball and striking out 12. Marcus Montagnino had four hits to lead the offense while Kellen Field added three and Cory Burnham had a multi-hit game.
The Mariners were in control from the jump by opening up a 5-0 lead after three and cruising through the second half of the game.
