by Ethan Marshall
Coach Domenick Caponi on the victory @EcybTournaments pic.twitter.com/IbfjiSwVud
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 11, 2019
The Long Island Thunder, behind an offensive explosion and a strong start by Nick Williams, defeated the Islip Owls 13-8. A five-run first inning for the Thunder set the tone for the game, and the Owls were unable to keep up.
Thunder head coach Domenick Caponi believes this victory is a good sign his team is getting out of an offensive funk. “I told my team right off the bat, we have to come out explosive, and they did,” Coach Caponi said. “The bats were hot and they never died down.”
Each of the first six hitters in the Thunder lineup finished the game with at least one RBI and one run scored. Cleanup hitter Thomas DeSantis led the way with three RBI and a run scored.
Thunder starting pitcher Nick Williams contributed both on the mound and at the plate, allowing two runs in 3.2 innings, and driving in two runs while also scoring another. According to Williams big factor in his success on the mound was his ability to keep the Owls hitters off-balance by mixing his fastball and change up. “I just feel like I was doing good with the change up and threw the strikes I needed to, and we got the win.”
While Owls starting pitcher Brandon Bartick struggled on the mound, he managed to get the job done at the plate, recording three RBI and scoring two runs. He ended up allowing nine runs, seven of which were earned, in 2.2 innings. Unfortunately for the Owls, Bartick wasn’t able to get into a rhythm after being ambushed by the Thunder in the first inning.
While the Thunder got off to a 9-0 lead by scoring five in the first, two in the second and three in the third, the Owls climbed their way back into the game. However, the Thunder were able to answer back with runs of their own almost each time. After the Owls tallied their first run in the bottom of the third to make it 9-1, the Thunder got the run back in the fourth. When the Owls scored three runs in the fifth inning to cut the Thunder lead to 10-5, the Thunder got those runs back in the sixth inning.
Despite the fact the Owls faced a 13-5 deficit going into the bottom of the sixth, the team did not go down quietly. After a leadoff single and stolen base by Shea Miller, he came around to score on a throwing error from a ground ball by Derek Rivera. Brandon Bartick and AJ Giel followed with back-to-back RBI doubles, cutting the Thunder’s lead to 13-8 with nobody out in the inning. However, the next two batters were retired, and, while the Owls managed to load the bases and put the tying run in the on-deck circle, the comeback ultimately fell short, as Kyle Carter struck out Jimmy Reidy looking to end the game.
