Pratt’s Walk-Off HR Completes Ninth Inning Team Blue Comeback at HCBL All-Star Game
The 2024 HCBL All-Star Game went down to the wire as the Team Blue All-Stars came back down 6-3 in the bottom of the ninth to score six runs highlighted by a three-run walk-off home run from Nick Pratt (UMBC) of the North Fork Ospreys. Team Blue took the win in the 2024 HCBL All-Star Game at Mashashimuet Park in Sag Harbor by a final score of 9-6 over Team Red.
Team Red took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning on RBI singles from JD Stemhagen (Manhattan) of Shelter Island and Braydon Wooldridge (UC Davis) of Westhampton. Stemhagen would add another run for Team Red in the top of the second with his second RBI single of the game.
Team Red would get an additional run in the top of the fifth on a wild pitch that brought Stemhagen to score to give the Red All-Stars a 4-0 lead.
Team Blue would slowly get back into the game starting in the bottom of the sixth inning when Trey McGowan (SUNY Oswego) of South Shore hit an RBI infield single that scored North Fork’s Nicolas Lorenzo (Richmond) to get the Blue All-Stars on the board. Lorenzo would get an RBI in the bottom of the seventh on an RBI groundout to cut the deficit to 4-2.
An error by Team Red in the bottom of the eighth would result in North Fork’s Anthony Equale (Washington (MO) scoring to put the Blue All-Stars within a run. Team Blue had runners at second and third with two out but Westhampton’s JJ Humenay (St. Lawrence) would strike out Kelly Crittenberger (Northwestern) of Sag Harbor to keep the Red All-Stars up 4-3 going into the ninth inning.
The Team Red All-Stars would get two runs in the top of the ninth to increase their lead to 6-3 on a two-run double from Westhampton’s Tyler Smith (Saint Peter’s) that was down the left field line. North Fork’s Alex Ardemagni (Washington (MO) would settle down and limit the damage to just the two runs as Team Blue came up to bat in the bottom of the ninth.
Team Blue would get the first two batters on-base on an error and an infield single as Sag Harbor’s Tucker Genovesi (St. Bonaventure) came up representing the tying run. Genovesi ripped a double scoring a run and putting the tying runs in scoring position.
McGowan would step up to the plate after North Fork’s Anthony Equale (Washington (MO) made the first out. McGowan hit an infield single for his second RBI of the game putting the tying run 90 feet away for the Blue All-Stars.
South Shore’s EJ Ettinger (New Haven) followed hitting an RBI single to left field tying the game at 6-6 bringing Pratt up to the plate. The UMBC infielder took the first pitch he saw to right center field winning the All-Star Game for the Blue Team completing the dramatic comeback as he took MVP honors.
Pratt is the fourth North Fork Osprey to be named as an All-Star Game MVP. Billy Ferriter (Connecticut) was the MVP in the 2010 Atlantic Collegiate Baseball League (ACBL) All-Star Game while Matt Carroll (San Jose St.) took ACBL ASG MVP honors the following season in 2011. Austin Miller (Butler) was the last Osprey before Pratt to be named an All-Star Game MVP having won the HCBL All-Star Game MVP award in 2014.
CLICK HERE TO READ TUCKER TERRANOVA’S RECAP OF THE HCBL ALL-STAR GAME ON AXCESS BASEBALL