The Patriot Cup seems to have found a long-term home with the Cotuit Kettleers, who made it clear they have no intentions of letting it go. 

Last Friday night in Game 4 in the race for the cup, Cotuit faced Hyannis on the Mets’ home turf, McKeon Field, in what can only be termed a stomping with the Kettleers taking the Mets 7-1.

Initially it seemed that the Mets would take control, as they were the first to make it onto the scoreboard with an RBI on a Matt Mangini walk in the first. 

Cotuit was quick to answer, and kept the line busy in spite of attempts by the Mets to shut them down. Jeff Rea singled to bring in to bring in Matt Angle to tie the game at 1-1. Then Sean Gaston stepped up to the plate and the challenge, smacking his first home run of the season, his ninth RBI, giving Cotuit a tidy 2-1 lead.

It was a lead the Kettleers held on to tightly and added to every chance they got. In the fifth Eric Farris tapped a nice bunt to load the bases allowing for another run to cross the plate on a single by Brett Lilley. Rea then scored on another hit before a double play by the Mets closed that half of the inning.

Gary Lee came in for the Mets in the sixth to replace Dan Latham but lost a bit of focus as he struck Angle with a hard pitch. In the seventh Lee hit Rea, drawing whispers from the crowd.

In the eighth, Kyle Russell cracked a second homer for Cotuit, bad news for Hyannis but great news for Habitat For Humanity, which receives $100 for each home run hit in the Cape League. 

Jared McGuire turned in a terrific diving catch for the Mets in the eighth, but it wasn’t enough to turn the game around. "We missed some opportunities in the first inning," said head coach Greg King. "They are too good of a hitting team. You just can’t make mistakes and that’s what we did."

In the race for the Patriot Cup, the Kettleers have the lead 3-1. Game 5 will be on Sunday in Hyannis at 5 p.m. 

By Kathleen Szmit Manwaring
kmanwaring@barnstablepatriot.com