Ness takes no hitter into
seventh in Dukes 4-1 victory
Michael Radomski
(Lynn, Mass.) – Michael Ness
(Duke) held the North Shore Navigators hitless through six and a
third innings, and Jason Krizan (Dallas Baptist) provided two RBIs
as the Pittsfield Dukes defeated the Navigators 4 to 1 at Fraser
Field.
Ness retired the first seven hitters and fifteen of the first
sixteen he faced on his way to his fourth victory of the season.
The Pittsfield Dukes would score first in the top of the third
inning against Navigator starter Mike DiCato (UMASS). After
recording the first two outs of the inning, DiCato induced Chris
Edmonson (Le Moyne) to hit a fly ball to right center field. North
Shore outfielder Michael Provencher (Mesa State College) ran over
and dropped the ball in right center as Edmondson moved to second on
the two base error.
Krizan followed the error with a broken bat bloop single to center
field to give Pittsfield the 1-0 lead. Matt Adams (Slippery Rock)
then hit a double to left field and Krizan was thrown out at the
plate on the relay throw from Chad Zurcher (University of Memphis)
to John Hill (Long Beach State) to end the inning.
Ness continued to pitch well as he set down the Navigators in order
in the fourth and fifth innings. In the game, the Duke student
athlete set down the order 1-2-3 on five separate occasions.
The Pittsfield bats would give Ness some more breathing room against
Mike DiCato in the sixth. Edmondson led off the inning with a single
up the middle and Krizan moved him to second base on a sacrifice
bunt. DiCato would then walk two more in the inning to load up the
bases with two outs. On the first pitch of the at bat, Domenic
DiRicco (Cornell) hit a single up the middle, scoring Edmondson and
Adams, to take the 3-0 lead. DiCato would leave after pitching six
innings of eight hit ball while allowing three runs (two earned).
With the three run lead, Ness walked the leadoff hitter Kyle Geason
(University of Minnesota) but Dukes catcher J.T. Musso (BYU) caught
Geason stealing second base, as Ness would retire the next two
hitters and carry the no-hit bid into the final three innings.
In the top of the seventh inning, Krizan would double home Musso on
a drive to left field to increase the lead to four runs.
In the bottom half of the inning, Ness struck out Michael Provencher
to start the inning, one of three strikeouts for the right-hander in
the ballgame. Sean McNaughton (BYU) then tripled to right center
field to break up the no-hitter. The crowd at Fraser Field gave Ness
a rousing ovation after the base hit.
After Nick Belcher struck out, the Navigators continued the rally
with a Tyler Kuehl (Point Loma Nazarene) RBI single to close the gap
to three runs. A single from Hill on the hit and run, and a hit by
pitch to Geason would load up the bases with two outs.
With the tying run at first base and the potential go-ahead run at
the plate, Ness retired Josh Garton (Volunteer State CC) by flying
out to center field to end the inning.
Jake Sabol (Central Michigan) pitched a 1-2-3 eighth inning and Zach
Anderson (Buffalo) earned his sixth save of the season by closing
out the ballgame.
With the 4-1 loss, the North Shore Navigators drop to 17-10 on the
season. The Navigators will host the Newport Gulls tomorrow night at
seven o’clock with Matthew Costello (Volunteer State CC) as the
slated starter. Costello is 1-0 on the season with a 0.00 ERA. He
has one start (one appearance) so far in the NECBL season, pitching
seven shutout innings and yielding just one hit while striking out
seven.
The Pittsfield Dukes move to 16-11 on the season and tie a franchise
high in wins in a single-season. The Dukes also increase their lead
in the Southern Division to 1 ˝ games with the Newport Gulls lose to
the Vermont Mountaineers. Pittsfield travels home tonight and will
be back on the road tomorrow when they play at the Sanford Mainers
in a 6:30 contest. Louie Bernardini (Wheaton College) will make the
start in his hometown state for the Dukes. Bernardini is 0-1 on the
season with a 7.62 ERA in four appearances (three starts).
The Dukes will also host the Torrington Twisters this week for a
doubleheader on Friday, July 18th beginning at six o'clock. The
Twisters and Dukes will play two games, each scheduled for seven
innings, and then STAR 101.7 FM and WBRK AM 1340 will sponsor the
fireworks show after the second game.
Fans can listen to the game to and all Pittsfield Dukes games on the
NECBL Broadcast Network by going to the site at
http://www.teamline.cc/sportpage?teamcode=6301&eventcode=5
Tickets are still available for Dukes’ games at Wahconah Park.
Tickets can be purchased at the Dukes box office at 105 Wahconah
Street or by calling 413 447 DUKE (3853).
