By Ben Gainsboro, Stetson University
Photos by Josh Muir, Endicott College
July 11th, 2019
By the Numbers: Cotuit (14-11-2) beats Harwich (12-15), 2-0
Pitchers Dazzle:
The 2 hits allowed for the Cotuit Kettleers pitching staff is the least amount of hits Cotuit pitching has allowed on the season.
Both hits were allowed by Reid Johnston (NC State) in six innings, with Matthew Mervis (Duke) coming in to finish off the game in the seventh inning.
Reid Johnston throws home vs. Harwich on Thursday night
11 combined strikeouts for the Mervis/Johnston duo. Johnston struck out four in his six innings, while Matthew Mervis sat down 7 Mariners in just three innings of pitching.
2 walks allowed by Mervis and Johnston, the second lowest number by any combination of Cotuit pitchers on the season (1 vs. Wareham on June 30th).
6 straight strikeouts by Matthew Mervis to close out the game. The six straight is the most by any Kettleer pitcher so far on the season.
Offense Does its Job:
7 hits for Cotuit on the day. It is now the 5th straight game where the Kettleers have recorded at least seven hits. Not surprisingly, in that stretch, Cotuit is 4-1.
2 hits for Allbry Major (Xavier). The Xavier Musketeer is now hitting a stellar .415 on the season and is 8 for his last 15 (.533 avg) at the dish. He also sports a seven-game hitting streak.
13 RBI now on the season for Adam Oviedo (Oral Roberts). The shortstop also delivered a huge hit for the Kettleers in the ninth inning, bringing Donta Williams (Arizona) home from third to give Mervis an extra run cushion entering the ninth. Mervis would prove to not need the help, but the extra run was nice to have regardless.
Digging a Little Deeper:
414 feet is how far the second inning home run from Donta Williams’ bat traveled. The home run is the longest of the season (per Trackman) for the Kettleers.
Donta Williams rounds the bases after homering in the second inning vs. Harwich
5-11, 175 the listed height and weight of Williams, who now owns the longest home run for any Kettleer on the year.
9 active position players weighing over 200 pounds for Cotuit. Williams is the second lightest active player on the Kettleers roster, five pounds above Sean Sullivan (pitcher, Cal).
103 MPH, the speed of the ball off of the bat of Williams on the home run.
6-4, the record for Cotuit in its last ten games. Only one team has a better record in that span, the Falmouth Commodores, who the Kettleers beat on July 10th by a score of 6-1.
30 points on the season for the Kettleers after this win. Cotuit is one of just four teams with at least 30 as we enter the latter half of July.
34 positive run differential for the Kettleers. Only one team has a better number, and that is Wareham at 36.
What’s Next?
Cotuit (14-11-2) returns home to face off with the same Harwich Mariners (12-15) on Friday, July 12th. First pitch at Lowell Park is set for 5:00 P.M.