Witherspoon, Bies Carry Braves to Their Third Straight Win

By: Jacob Janower

Despite offensive showings that had been strong enough to give them a pair of victories, the Bourne Braves have still been searching for a big hit this season.

On Tuesday, they got two.

Grant Witherspoon (Tulane) delivered a bases clearing double and Lyle Lin (Arizona State) hit an infield dribbler that was the go-ahead hit in the 5-4 win over the Cotuit Kettleers (4-2).

It had been three days since the last time the Braves (3-1) had played, due to a rained out doubleheader and a scheduled off day. However, they showed no signs of rust on Tuesday.

Bourne earned its revenge on Cotuit after it had lost 5-3 to the Kettleers on Opening Day.

Braves’ Defensive Miscues give Kettleers Early Runs

Both Turner Brown (East Carolina) and Jared Triolo (Houston) could not convert double plays that would have saved runs in the beginning of the game.

Brown bobbled a ground ball that would have gotten Braves’ starting pitcher Ronnie Rossomando (UConn) out of the inning unscathed. Instead, two runs came around to score just two batters later, which gave the Kettleers the early lead. Nevertheless, Brown was still able to get the force out at second base.

The one error committed by the Braves was charged to Triolo in the third inning when he took his eye off of a ball that also likely would have resulted in a double play. Cotuit would tie the game in the inning.

Witherspoon Breaks Out

Grant Witherspoon (Tulane) had previously hit two doubles on the season but with no payoff. On Tuesday, he came through with arguably the biggest hit of the Braves season thus far, a three-run double that capped off a four-run third inning and changed the tide of the game.

Kettleers’ starter Jason Bilous (Coastal Carolina) had seemed to be getting into a groove by recording two consecutive outs after he had allowed two hits, two walks, and a run to start the inning. However, Witherspoon capitalized on the first pitch, sending it into the right field corner.

“It felt good,” Witherspoon said. “I saw throw a lot of off-speed to Lyle (Lin) and I just sat on it.”

Duke Duo Dominates

Blue Devils Griffin Conine and Zack Kone each sported batting averages over .400 for Cotuit entering the game, and both came through in a big way.

Conine, the batting average leader on the Kettleers, got on base three times, while Kone delivered a pair of big hits, a two-run single in the first inning and a run scoring double in the third, both off of Rossomando. Kone reached base in all four of his at-bats.

Braves Bullpen Saves the Day

After Rossomando lasted just 2 and 1/3 innings, a quintet of relievers saved the day by throwing six and 2/3 innings of scoreless baseball.

Daniel Bies (Gonzaga) shouldered most of the workload, throwing three shutout innings, striking out three hitters and allowing just two runners to reach base.

For Bies, it was a change of plans after he was initially expected to make his first appearance as a starter.

“I ended up throwing a 20-pitch bullpen on Sunday when I was supposed to start and then I came back today and threw three innings,” Bies said. “It doesn’t affect your preparation as much as you would think. I was just anxious to throw, I was really looking forward to it.”

Second-year Brave Sean Leland (Illinois) also played a pivotal role out of the bullpen, stopping the bleeding in the third inning before throwing a scoreless fourth.

Christian Ryder (Georgia), Zach Mort (George Mason), and Ryan Feltner (Ohio State) combined to throw the final two scoreless innings. Feltner earned his second save of the season.

Brave of the Game

While Witherspoon’s momentum-altering double made him a strong candidate, Bies’ effort to hold the hot Kettleers in check in the middle innings earned him a win and greatly aided the Braves’ pitching staff.

“I just wanted them beat my best stuff tonight,” Bies said. “I wanted to fill the zone. Ronnie got in trouble when he was falling behind, so I was just trying to not fall behind and make them hit with two strikes, make them it behind in the count, and try to keep them guessing tonight. I think it worked out.”

Coming Up 

Bourne will return home to play the Orleans Firebirds for its first game at Doran Park since last Thursday. Chris Holba (East Carolina) is expected to make his second start of the season.

You can contact the author via email (jjanower@gmail.com) or follow him on Twitter (@JanowerJacob).

Pre-game, in-game, and post-game highlights: