NEWS & MEDIA

 

LYNN MA. - Newport has been on the losing side of two 1-0 contests for the last few Tuesday nights - first, on opening day vs. Valley, and most recently vs. Keene last week. Finally, Newport gets the last laugh on the road, picking up their second road W of the season.

 

Oisin Lee gave fans the first glimpses of a pitching masterclass, as he started by retiring the first three Newport batters in the top of the 1st. Finbar O'Brien (Gonzaga) saw what Lee did early on and dazzled beyond expectation. O'Brien strutted to work and calmly struck out the side in front of many relatives native to the greater Boston area. The O'Brien camp would have much more to cheer about as the game continued.

 

After two quick outs, a Will Fosberg (Northeastern) walk saw the first base runner reach between both sides in the second. However, a lineout by Kyle Branch (Oklahoma) ended the half-inning. O'Brien continued to deal facing the minimum through his next three innings. Lee did the same into the 5th, but O'Brien punched out eight Navigators through 4, compared to Lee's four K's. 

 

Lee went out for a fifth inning and immediately let up a leadoff hit to Colby Wallace (East Carolina). Fosberg followed up with a hard-hit ground ball to second base, but North Shore couldn't spin a double play, just getting Wallace on the force at second. Fortunately for the Navigators, Branch sent a grounder to short to spark a 6-4-3 double play to end the half inning. 

 

O'Brien paced out to the bump in the home half, and boy was he special. He faced four hitters, allowing his first runner on base due to a fastball that got away from the Gonzaga Bulldog, but he registered three more strikeouts, reaching double-digit K's with 11. He exited with the most punchouts by a pitcher this season across the NECBL.

 

Newport finally capitalized off relief pitcher Colin Dowdle in the 6th after A.J. Evasco (Kansas State) picked a timely moment for his first hit of the season. He sent a seed into left-center field that got to the wall, and Evasco ended up on third with a leadoff triple. Adrian Areizaga (MiamiFL) was beamed, which put runners on the corners, which was the best opportunity for either side to plate a run. Leadoff man Michael Gupton (Samford) hit a chopper to the shortstop that took a high enough bounce to convince Evasco to boogie to the plate with the infield in. No throw was made to the dish, and the Gulls were able to break the scoreless affair and take a 1-0 lead. A flyout and groundout ensued, and Newport was retired, but the Gulls had the lead.

 

John Downing (Seton Hall) had big shoes to fill following O'Brien's marvelous outing. He got two outs in eight pitches before walking Sam Parks. Downing zoned back in and punched out the next batter to put himself in line for the win. Newport would again threaten in the 7th, but a Branch strike out and Evasco groundout saw Newport leave Josh Castellani (Clemson) and Will Foserg stranded in scoring position after a double from Fosberg.

 

North Shore finally showed a fight in the bottom of the seventh after a leadoff single by Aukai Kea into right. The following batter would pop out to Branch at second, and Downing would get his third K of the evening. Pinch hitter Alex Marot stepped in for Simmi Whitehill and registered the Navigators' second hit of the inning as Kea moved station-to-station. It wouldn't be a stellar pitching night without a fourth and final punchout by Downing, who cut down Aidan Sengenberger.

 

Newport would put a runner on in each of the next two innings, but nothing would come of it, as Aidan Coleman (Pittsburgh) made his return in a Gulls uniform this season, getting three popouts in the 8th and the nod for the 9th as he went for the six-out save. After getting Wright to pop out, Kea blasted a one-out single into right for his second piece of the ballgame. Sean Scanlon added pressure by sending another liner into the right, falling right in front of Evasco. The runners were at the corners, with one down in the 9th.

 

Two pinch runners were called on for Kea and Scanlon. Coleman had to escape the mess, and with one out, he utilized his fastball to put away Jesse Jaconski for out number two. Stepping up was Marot, who was 1-for-1 on the day. On a 1-1 pitch, Scanlon's replacement, Ethan Wilson, took second on catcher's indifference as Fosberg did not fire a throw down to prevent the game-tying run to score. The count moved in favor of Marot, and the next pitch was ripped into center field. A base hit would give the Navigators the win, but it was Michael Gupton ranging back to his left to make the squeeze, and Newport would escape with a 1-0 win.

 

Tuesday's win was Newport's second road win and boosted Newport to 7-5. The Gulls return to Cardines Field on Wednesday, June 18th, and look to remain undefeated at home. The Gulls host the North Adams SteepleCats for their second straight cross-division matchup before an off-day on Thursday.

 

Wednesday night's game will stream on ESPN+, with the first pitch at 6:35 p.m.