Thanks to a pair of weekend shutouts, Hamilton is one win victory away from its fourth consecutive Intertown Twilight League baseball championship.
A 5-0 triumph on Saturday, coupled with a 4-0 whitewashing Sunday afternoon, have put the Generals in complete control of their best-of-5 ITL title series against the Manchester Mariners.
Hamilton (now 18-6), which has won all four of its playoff games this summer after finishing second to Manchester by a single game during the regular season, has a clinch the crown once again Wednesday in Game 3 at Memorial Field in Essex (5:30 p.m.). If necessary, Game 4 would be at Patton Park in Hamilton Saturday (4 p.m.), and a potential winner-take-all Game 5 would be held Sunday back in Essex (4 p.m.).
Will Jones was dominant for Hamilton on the mound in Game 1, spinning a complete game three-hitter while striking out eight Mariners. All five runs for the Generals crossed home plate in the second inning thanks to big run-scoring hits from Conor McClintock, Will Frain, Gian Gamelli and Hunter Wilichoski.
Toeing the slab Sunday afternoon at his home ballpark, Ryan Hutchinson also had a stellar performance. He surrendered just two hits and one walk in a complete game effort of his own, also striking out eight. After a one-out double in the first inning by Harry Painter, Hutchinson retired 19 of the final Manchester batters of the afternoon.
Wilichoski’s RBI single in the bottom of the first was all the offense Hamilton would need. Will Cooke added an RBI single to center in the fifth, another run scored on an error, and Giamelli’s triple brought home the final run.
Mariners trail Generals 2-0 in ITL championship series
No room for error
By Nick Giannino
» Sports Editor
The Manchester Essex Mariners are going to have to muster up some magic this week if they want to stay alive in the ITL championship.
Going into the playoffs as the top seed, Manchester made quick work of the Rowley Rams to kick things off, earning a two-game series sweep to advance to the finals for a remarkable 14th consecutive time.
But the going has gotten tough from there, as Hamilton has proven to be a worthy adversary and has now jumped out to a swift 2-0 lead in the best-of-5 title series.
Behind a complete game gem from Will Jones in Saturday’s championship opener, the Generals secured a 5-0 victory for the early series lead. Ryan Hutchinson then came through with an equally effective outing on the mound on Sunday afternoon to help his team to another shutout win, this time a 4-0 decision at Patton Park.
In Game 1, Manchester managed just three hits
off Jones — those coming from Luke Leavitt, James McKenna and Troy Flood — while striking out eight times. Hamilton, meanwhile, plated all five of its runs in a big second inning thanks to RBI hits from Conor McClintock, Will Frain, Gian Gamelli and Hunter Willochoski.
On Sunday, Manchester had just two hits: a double from Harry Painter and a single from leadoff man Lukas Albano. Hutchinson fanned eight batters as well while walking just one in his seven innings of work.
Zach Abbott (5 IP, 8 hits, 4 ER) was solid on the bump for Manchester, but it wasn’t enough.
Now, the Mariners will have to win on Wednesday at home at Memorial Park (5:30 p.m. start) to keep their season alive, and will need three straight wins overall to capture the title.
