Wareham, MA – Behind dominant pitching and some explosive offense, Cotuit was able to roll to a 6-0 win over Wareham. With the win, Cotuit (9-8) is able to jump above .500 for the first time since the first week of the season. “I’m just really pleased right now with the progress of our club” said Coach Mike Roberts.
Jake Brooks (UCLA) and Harrison Cohen (George Washington) combined to shutout the gatemen, allowing just three hits combined. Roberts emphasized, “When you’re throwing strikes and playing great defense, if you can hammer a couple of baseballs then you have a chance to win every night.” And the Kettleers did just that, hitting three homers to open up a 6-0 lead.
Moments that mattered:
Brooks tosses another gem
Cotuit starter Jake Brooks (UCLA) turned in another beautiful start on Monday night, throwing five shutout innings while only surrendering one hit. Brooks was incredibly efficient again, throwing just 56 pitches in his five innings of work. “I just get in a groove, at UCLA we focus on pitching where you want to pitch and working both in and out.” Said Brooks who forced a ground out on 10 of the 18 outs he recorded.
Brooks has been one of the best pitchers on Cotuit’s staff this season, posting a .67 ERA through 15.2 innings pitched. The UCLA product’s final line was 5 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 5 K. “I just got to keep going, but it’s been pretty good up to this point” said Brooks who is aiming to keep up his recent stretch.
Trio of Cotuit homers power offense
Going into the top of the fifth the Kettleers had only mustered one hit off of Wareham starter Spencer Miles, a Ryan Ritter (Kentucky) single in the third. Ritter stepped back into the box for his second at-bat feeling confident “I was just playing loose today” said Ritter, who looked incredibly comfortable against Miles. The Kentucky product dug in with two outs and nobody on looking to get something started. Ritter did just that, demolishing a ball over the left field fence to give the Kettleers a 1-0 lead. “It was a good feeling for sure. I was really happy when that ball went over” Ritter exclaimed when asking about his first homer of the season.
The Kettleers were able to keep the pressure on in the next inning, getting two runners on for Eric Brown (Coastal Carolina). Brown has been one of the hottest hitters on the cape as of late with his .333 batting average. Brown kept up his hot hitting, belting another home run to left to make the score 4-0. The Cotuit order kept pushing in the seventh, as Nathan Martorella (California) led off with a single, and River Town (Dallas Baptist) continued the home run barrage with a two run shot of his own. The three innings of offensive production were refreshing for the Kettleers, who rode the six run lead to an easy victory.
Cohen seals the deal
Harrison Cohen (George Washington) had his best outing of the year out of the pen today, following up Brooks’ gem with one of his own. Cohen tossed four innings of shutout ball to end the game for Cotuit. Cohen only allowed one hit and racked up five strikeouts. “Harrison was the best I have ever seen him throw” said Coach Roberts who was incredibly pleased with Cohen’s outing. Cohen was pounding the zone, which resulted in some very fast half innings for Cotuit on defense.
Notables:
Jake Brooks (UCLA): 5 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 5 K, WP
Harrison Cohen (George Washington): 4 IP, 1 H , 5K
Ryan Ritter (Kentucky): 2-3, 1 RBI, 1 R
Up next: The Kettleers will continue their road trip with a game at Harwich tomorrow at 6:30 PM. The Kettleers have only played Harwich one other time this year, a 10-3 loss on July 2nd.