By: Shannon Bickert

The Schooners hit four home runs in their 11-5 victory over Danbury on Monday, July 13. Mystic moved to 18-11 for the summer and 11-2 on the road with the win.

A first inning two-run blast put the Schooners up 2-0 after a half inning. Jack Harley (Stetson) led off the game with a walk against Jacob Hines (UMass). Cam Righi (UConn) followed, ripping an opposite field home run, his first of the summer, to put Mystic up early.

On the first pitch from Tristan Aasland (UConn), Aidan Stern hit a solo shot to right-center field. After giving up the home run, Aasland settled in nicely, retiring the next three hitters he faced, striking out two.

Jamie Zee (Notre Dame) led off the second inning with a solo home run to left field, giving the Schooners a 3-1 lead.

Aasland struck out the side in his second inning of work.

In the top of the third, Anthony Ruggiero (URI) singled up the middle, and Joel Collado worked a walk. Thomas O’Connell ripped the Schooners’ third homer of the night, a three-run blast to right-center field, giving Mystic a 6-1 lead.

Stern broke Aasland’s strand of eight straight hitters retired in the third, drawing a walk, but the Westerners were unable to capitalize.

In his Schooners debut, Chris Walsh (Northeastern) worked a leadoff walk in the fourth inning against the new arm Cole Kochanowicz (Lehigh). Harley drove a ball deep off the left field fence, bringing in Walsh on the double. Righi kept a hot bat with a double to the left field fence. The Schooners continued to mash; Ruggiero launched a ball over the left field fence for a three-run shot, giving Mystic a nine-run lead.

Ryan Preisano (WFU) hit the second Westerners homer of the night, a solo shot to right-center field in the bottom of the fourth.

Zev Salsberg (Bryant) took the bump for Mystic in the fifth inning. Peter Link (SHU) led off the frame with a double down the left field line. Link came in to score on Jack Edmund’s (Brown) bloop single to right field, cutting the deficit to seven runs.

The Westerners made a call to the bullpen in the sixth to Teagan Beames (Quinnipiac). Anthony Belisario (GWU) singled to left field, but Beames stranded Belisario on the base paths.

Danbury chipped away in the sixth. Jack Lutte (Denison) worked a walk, and Gavin Donahue (SHU) hit a long ball to left field, making it a 10-5 ball game.

Liam Chamberlin (Portal) pitched for Mystic in the bottom of the seventh inning. Noel Rivera (Jacksonville) and Stern strung together hits, but Chamberlin got out of the jam.

Walsh led off the eighth inning with a walk and swiped second. Righi reached on a dropped third strike and stole second. Belisario drew a walk to load the bases for Mystic. Ruggiero worked a walk to plate the 11th Schooners run of the night, ending Beames’ day. The Westerners turned to Jackson DiLorenzo (Portal) who got out of trouble holding Mystic at the 11-5 lead.

Mystic brought a new arm out in the eighth, Braden Leed (PSU). Leed walked the first two batters he faced, but worked himself out of the traffic.

Ronan Donahue (SHU) took the bump for Danbury in the ninth inning. Gavin O’Brien (Northeastern) singled, and Walsh worked his fourth walk of the night. The Schooners would be held scoreless in the final frame despite the traffic.

Leed closed out the Schooners win, holding the Westerners in the final frame.

The Schooners return home on Tuesday, July 14 to host the Keene Swamp Bats. First pitch is set for 6:30 pm from Ed Harvey Field.