NORTH SHORE – (Radio) Local news and sports updates. Details on Friday’s Salem road race (below) and the Navigators post their 5th straight win. (Details below)
NEWSCAST – Rick Moore
SPORTSCAST – Bill Newell
The North Shore Navigators continued their second half resurgence with a 10-2 victory over the Bristol Blues at Muzzy Field in Bristol on Wednesday night. With the win the Navigators slide into a tie of fourth place with a record of 14-16 while the Blues drop to fifth place with a 13-16 record on the 2016 season.
Cole O’Connor (Dartmouth) was excellent on the mound for the Navs as he went six innings while giving up two earned runs on seven hits while striking out four. The win improves O’Connor’s record to 2-1 on the season.
The Navigators got the offense going in the top of the third inning when Ben Kennedy (Texas) and Joey Pena (St. Thomas Aquinas) led the inning off with a single and walk, respectively. Mike D’Acunti (Southeastern) reached on an error which scored Kennedy and then Pena scored on a ground out by the following batter to give the Navs a 2-0 lead. Up next was Alex Brickman (Siena) who doubled the Navigator lead as he hit a laser over the left field fence to give the Navs a 4-0 lead after three innings.
After the Navigators and Blues exchanged single markers in both the fifth and sixth innings to make the score 6-2, the Navigators blew the game open in the seventh inning. D’Acunti, Colby Maiola (UMass Lowell) and Mack Nathanson (Wofford) all doubled, increasing the Navigator lead to 8-2.
The Navs offense was not finished as they continued to tack on a pair of runs in the top of the eighth inning. RBI hits by both D’Acunti and Maiola gave the Navigators lead to 10-2.
D’Acunti, Maiola and Brickman combined for eight RBIs and five runs scored in the winning effort.
The win gives the Navigators their fifth straight win. They have also won 7 of their last 8 games and 13 of their last 17 games. This is quite a turnaround considering the Navigators lost 8 straight and 11 of 12 to start the season.
“We struggled at the beginning of the season,” said Navigators General Manager Bill Terlecky. “We have finally hit our groove and we look forward to making a run for the FCBL playoffs. This season is far from over but I can promise you we will be fighting until the end.”
Terlecky’s remarks come at a crucial time for the Navigators as they have moved into the playoff picture and sit tied for fourth place in the FCBL. The Navigators will look to continue their momentum right up to the All-Star break which begins on July 11th.
The Navigators return to Fraser Field on Friday this week as they play host to the first place Worcester Bravehearts. It is also a fireworks night with action beginning at 7 p.m.
