Shelter Island Bucks fly over Westhampton Aviators

On Monday, July 17,  the Shelter Island Bucks last inning heroics at Fiske Field produced a big  6-5 comeback win against the Westhampton Aviators.

Dr. Frank Adipietro announced the Hamptons Collegiate Baseball League contest and Shelter Island High School  graduate, and American University of Paris rising junior, Emma Martinez, sang the National Anthem.

The Bucks record was 10-15 coming into the game.

The Islanders have been playing hard this July, with eight games since the last report. On July 9, the Bucks split a double header against the South Shore Clippers with the Clippers winning 9-0 in the first game, and the Bucks winning 7-5 in the second.

On the 11th, the Bucks were shut out 10-0 by the Southampton Breakers. In a double header against the Westhampton Aviators on the 12th the Bucks tied 7-7 in the first game, and lost 9-7 in the second. They followed with a 15-8 victory against the Aviators the next day.

Pressure was on early in Monday’s game, with the Aviators standing at the top of the league with a record of 17-9-2. The Bucks started strong in the first inning, getting two quick outs.

The Aviators showed their prowess when their third batter, Jack Halloran (Emory U), hit a two-run homer. Colby Arnold (Elms College), on the mound for the Bucks, showed strong movement and control, and quickly shut down any more chances of scoring with a strikeout to end the inning. But the Bucks couldn’t score in the bottom half.

The Bucks showed strong defense, with a tailor-made double play. The Aviators answered back with their own double play. Some sloppy base running by the Aviators plus a lot of pop-flys and infield outs made easy innings for both teams, but that ended in the top of the 4th when a massive home run was hit by Aviator Sean Keys (Bucknell U) making the score 4-0.

The Bucks tried to answer back when Jack Vallairo (Fordham U) ran home on a hit to the outfield but was tagged out before reaching the plate. With the help of a ground rule double, the Aviators put another run on the board.

The Bucks made a pitching change, bringing in Noah Sanabia (Nichols College). What he had in power was sacrificed to a lack of control, walking three out of the first four batters. A tidy double play by the Bucks saved the inning from going further south.

The Islanders caught some luck in the 6th. A hit from Zach Ganca (Fairleigh Dickinson U Florham) allowed Conor Kiely (Stonehill College) to score and get on the board for the Bucks. 

At this time, loyal Bucks spectator 8-year-old Colby Keil (Shelter Island little league first baseman) was brought to the broadcast table to announce the game with the help of Dr. Frank.

A special shout-out was given to Joseph Rasputin (Shelter Island Little League) who has been the Bucks batboy for the past two years. Excitement built when a combination of two strong hits from Iziah Walker (Southern Connecticut St U) and Kiely got a second run in for the Bucks.

In the 7th inning the Aviators kept the Bucks outfield busy by hitting three fly balls which were all caught, ending the inning. In the final inning, the chances for an upset were slim but not zero. After a walk and a single, the Aviators decided it would be best to replace Michael DiForte (Saint Peter’s University) for Ryan Miller (Norwich U).

Walking his first batter, the bases were loaded with no outs and Walker’s double down the left field line plated two Bucks This momentum carried across the team, and was followed by another score. With the crowd cheering, Wilson Dunn (Hope International University) blasted one over the fence to secure the win.

The team rushed the field in a mix of excitement and emotion and crowded around Dunn to celebrate their comeback.

Come see the Bucks play in the final home games of the season on July 21 and 23rd at 5 p.m. at Fiske Field.