Bucks drop twin bill to Breakers — In the running for a postseason berth
The Shelter Island Bucks fell to third place in the Hampton Collegiate Baseball League after dropping both ends of a doubleheader against the Southampton Breakers at Fiske Field on Sunday afternoon.
With a record of 16-12-0 as of the Reporter’s press deadline, the Bucks stand in third place in the HCBL, behind the Tomcats (19-8-1) and the Westhampton Aviators (19-10-1), and ahead of the fourth place Sag Harbor Whalers (14-13). The top three teams in the league automatically make the postseason, with the teams finishing fourth and fifth squaring off in a Wild Card game.
The first game against Southampton on Sunday was tightly contested as the two teams traded runs until the final inning.
The Breakers took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first on a solo home run off the bat of rightfielder Isaiah Winiker (Towson). The Bucks tied the game on an RBI single by Eddy Satisky (Lexington) in the bottom of the first.
After a scoreless second inning, Shelter Island took a two-run lead when Logan Steenstra (Cowley County CC) ripped a two-out single to right field, scoring Larson Fontenot (Northwestern State). A double by Justin Murray (Dartmouth) brought Steenstra home and put the Bucks up 3-1 entering the fourth inning.
The Breakers answered, tying the game on a bases-loaded single by Tony Zambito (Southern Connecticut) in the top of the fourth. In their next at bat, Southampton took a one-run lead as Johnny Hipsman’s (Richmond) double to right field brought home Michael Ferrara (North Carolina Greensboro).
The Bucks got the run back in the top of the fifth as a two-out single by Justin Murray scored John Shields (Lipscomb U) from third, tying the game 4-4. But the tie was broken on a sacrifice fly by Breakers first baseman Robbie Holmes (Monmouth) in the final inning.
In their last at bat, the Bucks got the tying run to second on a one-out double by Steenstra, but Breakers reliever Rigo Tapia (Monroe) retired the next two batters to secure the victory for the Breakers. The loss snapped a three-game Bucks winning streak.
In the second game of the doubleheader, Breakers starting pitcher Michael Lazos (LIU) limited Shelter Island to one run in five innings as Southampton scored four runs in the seventh inning and coasted to 7-2 victory.
The Bucks dropped another doubleheader on Monday afternoon in Riverhead, falling to the Tomcats 2-0 in the first game and 6-1 in the second.
