Whalers and Ospreys Finish in a 10-Inning 2-2 Tie
The North Fork Ospreys jumped out to an early two-run lead, but the Sag Harbor Whalers battled back to earn a hard-fought 2-2 tie in 10 innings Sunday afternoon at Mashashimuet Park in a game dominated by pitching after the opening frame.
North Fork wasted no time getting on the scoreboard in the first inning. Tristan Govea (Felician) led off the scoring by launching a solo home run to right-center field, and just a few batters later Gianni Generoso (SUNY Westchester CC) followed with another solo blast to center, giving the Ospreys a quick 2-0 advantage.
Sag Harbor chipped away in the third. Aaron Vetter (Palm Beach Atlantic) reached base on a one-out double and eventually came around to score on an RBI groundout by Eddie Morrissey (St. Lawrence), cutting the deficit to 2-1.
The Whalers finally pulled even in the seventh inning without recording a hit. Vetter crossed the plate on a wild pitch after Morrissey advanced to second, knotting the score at 2-2.
From there, both pitching staffs took over. Neither club could break the deadlock over the final three innings, settling for the 10-inning tie.
North Fork starter Logan Pulitano (Post) was sharp despite issuing six walks, allowing just two hits and one run while striking out six over five innings. Kyle Egidio (Hamilton) followed with three innings of one-run ball, striking out five, before Matt Guido (Lycoming) tossed two scoreless innings to preserve the tie. The Ospreys’ trio combined for 13 strikeouts.
Sag Harbor recovered nicely after the first inning. Braeden Mott (Barton) surrendered the two solo home runs over the first two innings, but Kris Vinski (St. Joseph’s (Brooklyn) stabilized the game with five scoreless innings, allowing three hits while walking just one. Finley Holmes (Palm Beach Atlantic) added a scoreless eighth despite giving up two hits, and Derek Desmarais (Tufts) closed the afternoon with two hitless innings, striking out two while lowering his league-leading ERA to 0.96.
The Whalers managed just five hits, with Vetter leading the way by reaching base multiple times and scoring both Sag Harbor runs.
North Fork collected seven hits, highlighted by first-inning home runs from Govea and Generoso. After the opening frame, however, the Ospreys were unable to capitalize on their opportunities against a Whalers pitching staff that retired them scorelessly over the final eight innings.
The tie puts Sag Harbor in a two-way tie with Westhampton for the second seed in the HCBL playoff race at 14-11-1, while Shelter Island holds the tiebreaker over North Fork for the fourth seed with both teams at 28 points due to Shelter Island having more wins (12) than North Fork (11).