Mountaineers Clinch Playoff
Spot, Winning, 6-4, at Holyoke
HOLYOKE, Mass. - The Vermont
Mountaineers took a 6-4 decision from the NECBL North
Division-leading Holyoke Giants, Thursday at MacKenzie Stadium.
The win for Vermont (22-15) clinches a playoff spot for the
Mountaineers, and pulls them within a game of Holyoke (23-14)
for the division lead.
Curry struck out the side in the first to keep the game
scoreless, going into the second.
The Mountaineers got on the board first in the second inning,
taking a 3-0 lead. After Curt Smith (Maine) walked and stole
second, Kyle Massie (Vermont) singled to right field for his
first RBI of the season.
Lanny Stanfield (William & Mary followed, doubling home Gerald
Ogrinc (Wright State) and Massie.
Holyoke shortstop Kyle Bellows cut into the lead in the third,
hitting just the second home run this season at MacKenzie
Stadium - a solo shot - to left-center field.
The Giants loaded the bases following the home run on singles by
Mike Walczuk, Matt Riemer and an error by Stanfield, but nothing
came of the threat. Justin Little grounded into a fielder's
choice to end the inning.
The Mountaineers added three more runs in the third, for a 6-1
lead. Smith singled up the middle to make it, 4-1 after a double
and a bunt single by Shaun Hagey (Rhode Island) and A.J. Pollock
(Notre Dame) put runners on first and second.
Two batters later, Mike Sheridan (William & Mary) singled home
Smith, who had stolen second. Massie then tallied his second RBI
of the game and season on a sacrifice fly, scoring Matt
Prokopowicz (Hofstra).
Curry settled down in the bottom of the third, retiring the
Giants in order, with two swinging strikeouts of Jake Christman
and Bellows.
After no scoring in the fourth, Holyoke starter Dustin Corbett
got the Mountaineers out in order in the fifth and sixth
innings.
Corbett (4-2) went six innings allowing seven hits and five
earned runs with three walks, before giving way to Josh
Creveling in relief to start the seventh.
Curry allowed back-to-back one-out singles in the seventh to
Walczuk and Riemer and then walked Kevin McDonnell to load the
bases. Little was then hit by a pitch, forcing in pinch runner
Kent Graham from third, to cut the lead to 6-2.
Kody Hightower hit a two-run single over the glove of Stanfield
to make it 6-4 going to the eight inning.
Alex Meyer (Georgetown) relieved Curry (2-0) in the eighth for
the Mountaineers. Curry gave up four runs and on seven hits
while striking out seven and walking two.
Meyer got Kevin Renaud to swing at strike three but Renaud
reached on as the ball went to the backstop. Renaud then stole
second and moved to third on an errant Ogrinc throw. Meyer got
out of the jam though, striking out Riemer looking.
Justin Gutsie (St. John's) pitched the ninth, striking out two,
for his eighth save.
Vermont is back on the road Friday at Keene, while Holyoke will
head to up north to take on the Sanford Mainers.
You can hear all Mountaineers' game on the Internet at
www.teamline.cc with Paul Roper and Bob Lund, and on the radio
in central Vermont on ESPN 1240 WSKI with Kyle Dorau.
