Coming into the week with a solid 7-4 record (5-4 Metro), the ‘Jackets were three wins away from the important 10-win plateau. When the week was over and the dust had settled, Milton reached that goal, with wins at North Country and home against Missisquoi and Middlebury.
On Tuesday, the ‘Jackets made the long drive to Newport to take on the winless Falcons. Milton came out swinging with a 5-run 1st inning and didn’t stop. Anthony Campbell’s bases clearing double in the 1st inning really set the tone for the day and opened the floodgates for Milton’s offense, which scored in every inning but the 5th on their way to an 18-2 victory.
Kyle McRae led the charge at the plate and on the mound for Milton, going 4 for 5 with 2 doubles and 5 RBI while also firing 5 innings of scoreless, 1-hit baseball with 5 strikeouts and 1 walk. Colton Carpenter pitched the final inning of game shortened due to the 15-run rule.
Campbell and Matt Goulet also had big days for the ‘Jackets. Campbell was 2 for 3 with a double and 4 RBI, while Goulet was 3 for 3 with 3 RBI. Milton had 10 players with a hit and 7 with an RBI in the offensive outburst.
Thursday saw Milton play host to another winless team in the Missisuoi Thunderbirds. It was an up and down contest, but in the end, the ‘Jackets overcame 7 errors as they did their best Yankees impression (apologies to Sox fans everywhere) with their second walk-off win in as many weeks.
Missisquoi jumped out to a 4-0 lead, scoring 4 runs with 2 outs in the 2nd inning. Milton answered back in the bottom half of the inning however, putting 6 runs on the board to set the score at 6-4. This would be somewhat of a pattern throughout the day, as the ‘Jackets kept on scoring and the Thunderbirds kept on answering, as they proved to be a very pesky team that refused to go away.
Fast forward to the bottom of the 7th inning, where the score was locked at 11-11. Nick Ferguson led off the inning with a hit-by-pitch. Carpenter attempted 2 sacrifice bunts, but decided he’d rather execute the 2-strike, swinging bunt variety, as he fought off a tough pitch and tapped a ball down the third base line just far enough to advance Ferguson to 2nd base. This was huge for the ‘Jackets as they now had the winning run in scoring position with the top of the lineup coming to bat.
Jeremy Peet stepped in the box and calmly worked his at-bat with the infielders playing on the grass. With 2 strikes, he hooked a ball past the 2nd basemen and Ferguson came around to score the winning run to give the ‘Jackets a 12-11 victory.
Alex Duchesneau pitched the 7th inning to pick up the win in relief, giving up 1 run on 1 hit and 1 strikeout. Corey Hurley went the first 5 innings, giving up 7 unearned runs on 7 hits, 3 strikeouts and 1 walk, before giving way to Ferguson who pitched the 6th inning allowing 3 runs (1 earned) on 2 hits.
Offensively, Peet (2 for 5, RBI) and Hurley (3 for 3, triple, RBI) led the way for Milton. Goulet also went 1 for 1 with 3 RBI and Ferguson had a big 2-run double.
In their 3rd game of the week, the ‘Jackets played host to the Middlebury Tigers. Milton was looking for its 5th straight win and 10th overall.
After a scoreless 1st inning, the ‘Jackets used 4 runs in the 2nd inning, and 7 in the 3rd to essentially put the game away early. Duchesneau cruised to the complete game victory, surrendering 6 runs (4 earned) on 13 hits, 3 walks and 3 strikeouts. Middlebury pushed across 6 runs in the final 3 innings, but Milton added 1 run late to hold on for a 12-6 victory.
Hurley (3 for 4, 3 RBI) and Carpenter (2 for 3, RBI) led the Milton offense while Campbell and Pat Gilbert also added 2 RBI respectively.
The win is the ‘Jackets 5th straight, 10th overall and 8th in the Metro Division, as they continue a solid season. They now stand at 10-4 (8-4 Metro) with 2 games remaining against defending Division I state champion Essex at home, and defending Division II state champion Mt. Abraham, who knocked Milton out of the playoffs last year, in Bristol.
No comments:
Post a Comment