Chatham rode the momentum of a two-out, two run rally in the third to a 4-3 win over the Falmouth Commodores Tuesday night at Veteran's Field.
The victory snapped a 4-game winless streak for the A's.
Already trailing 2-0 in the third on two unearned Falmouth runs, the first two Chatham batters were set down by Commodore starter Christian Friedrich (Eastern Kentucky). Friedrich came into the game with a record of 2-0, having not allowed a run in either of his first two starts.
Addison Johnson (Clemson) got things started with an infield single. Scott Lyons (Arkansas) followed with a RBI triple and the A's had a runner on third for Jermaine Curtis (UCLA), who came into the game fifth in the league in hitting with a .351 clip. The Bruin capped the rally with an RBI single to tie the score at 2.
The A's came right back with another run off Friedrich in the fourth. Sean O'Brien (Virginia Tech) led off with a single and Kevin McAvoy (Maine) bunted him over the second, the first of many great Chatham bunts in the game. After Allan Dykstra (Wake) reached on an error, Trey Watten (Abilene Christian) drove in O'Brien with a sacrifice fly to give the A's a 3-2 lead.
Meanwhile, Ryan Hinson (Clemson) coasted through the Falmouth order. In five innings, Hinson allowed two runs, both unearned, on four hits while walking none and striking out eight. Seven of Hinson's eight strikeouts were of the swinging variety.
The offense added a critical insurance run with small ball in the seventh. Watten walked to start the inning and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Kyle Seager (UNC). After Addison Johnson singled Watten to third, things got interesting. Scott Lyons (Arkansas) came to the plate and laid down a perfect bunt, his second of the game. The runner on third, Watten, broke for home and scored Chatham's fourth run on the safety squeeze.
Kevin Couture (USC) relieved Hinson in the sixth and worked out of a two-out, bases loaded jam in his first inning of work. Couture, who came into game with a 0.00 ERA, then retired Falmouth 1-2-3 in the seventh before tiring after getting the first two outs in the eighth. Aja Barto (Tulane) singled and scored on a Jeremy Farrell (Virginia) double to bring Falmouth within one.
The bullpen was not about to give this game away, however. Bryan Shaw (Long Beach St.) came in and got John Wallace (Oregon St.) to ground out to second. Shaw also worked a perfect ninth and recorded his third save of the season.
As always, Chatham takes on rival Orleans on the Fourth of July. This year's contest is set for 7pm at Eldredge Park and features Chatham's Nathan Moreau (Georgia) versus Orleans' Wynn Pelzer (South Carolina).
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