by Lou Accumanno
In a back and forth 17U Division matchup, the sixth inning was a big one for the East Coast Jays as they came scored five runs in the sixth to come back from a two-run lead to take down Next Level Baseball with the final score 8-7.
Joseph Detomasso started on the mound for the Jays as he struck out the side for the first inning.
The Jays got off to a quick one nothing lead in the first as Jonathan Sepe singled off to send home James Capozzi.
At the top of the third, the Jays lost the one nothing lead as Detomasso got himself into a jam as three runs scored for Next Level.
Head Coach of the Jays, Chris Lopiccolo said, “Swing at those strikes and get us back in it.” The Jays then responded back as Sepe doubled to start off the inning and shortly after, Jack Rankin tripled to send him home cutting the lead down to one run headed into the forth.
Lopiccolo relieved Detomasso in the fifth and put in Matthew Jacob who had a rough start letting his first batter walk and then steal both second and third base off wild throws. Jacob managed to let one run score in the inning as the lead for Next Level Baseball was extended 4-2.
At the bottom of the fifth the runs started to pile up for the Rays as Anthony Urlich singled to send home both Philip Piro and Capozzi and tied the game at four a piece. Four more runs piled up as Sepe, Rankin, Kevin Murphy and Michael Pealstein came in to score for the Jays as they brought the lead to a controlling 8-4 lead to end the fifth.
Headed into the sixth, Lopiccolo made his final pitching adjustment for the game and relieved Jacob to put in Piro to keep the four-run lead and close out the game. Piro had no troubles and struck out the first three batters to end the inning.
The Jays tried to get more runs in the sixth but failed as they headed towards the top of the seventh with just a four-run lead.
Piro faced problems in the seventh as bases were loaded for the opposing team with only one out recorded. Three runs came to score to cut the lead down to just one run. Piro needed to get two outs put this game away. He struck out the final two batters to get the victory for the Jays.
The Jays are now at a 3-5 record in the 17U Scout Division season. Lopiccolo said, “we needed this one bad after tying or losing close games. We finally learned how to buckle down and kept playing defense and scored a whole lot of runs.”
Anthony Urlich not only turned 17 years old today but helped the East Coast Jay’s get the win over Next Level Baseball. He ignited the teams offense as they scored 5 runs in the sixth. He is your Axcess Baseball Player of the game. pic.twitter.com/nnKRwlxowj
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) July 10, 2019
The Jays look at this game as signs of improvement from a rocky start to their season as they took down a very competitive team in Next Level Baseball.
