Posted in: Sports 
By Dan Crowley

Jul 13, 2007 - 9:44:50

The Bourne Braves remain the top club in the Western Division; however, Cotuit sits just two-games back. At the same time Falmouth and Hyannis are turning it on, just four games back each, making the final weeks of the Cape League summer a race to the finish.
Falmouth moved a game closer Wednesday with a 2-1 victory behind the pitching of Aaron Crow (Missouri), who tossed six solid innings, allowing one run on four hits.

    T.J. Hose had the hill for Bourne and, pitching nearly as well, held Falmouth to four hits. The two runs scored by the Commodores were both unearned.

    Falmouth pushed two runs across in the top of the fourth and the best the Braves could do was answer with one in the bottom of the fifth, also unearned.

    Returning from an injury, T.J. Steele (Arizona) went 2-for-3 and scored Bourne's only run. Hose (3-1) was tagged with his first loss of the season.

    The last time Wareham's Jeremy Bleich (Stanford) faced the Braves it was the Fourth of July, and he was tagged with the loss after Bourne got to him for nine hits. Monday, Bleich was back on the hill facing the Braves, and this time held Bourne to just four hits as the Gatemen claimed a 3-1 victory.

    Mitch Harris (Naval Academy) got the start for Bourne and pitched seven solid innngs giving up three runs on six hits.

    Trailing 3-0 in the top of the eighth, Addison Maruszak (South Florida) reached on an error, went to second on a base hit by Josh Workman (Wichita State) and scored on single into right center field by Josh Satin (Cal-Berkley).

    Mitch Moreland went 3-for-4 and led off the ninth with a base hit but there was no rally for the Braves as the next two struck out and the third hit a game ending fly ball to the right fielder.

    Sunday, Hyannis Mets’ pitching held Bourne to just six hits, but the trio of arms couldn't contain Satin and Matt Hall (Arizona State), who each had two hits. They both scored a run and Satin accounted for two RBI and Hall another. In the bottom of the sixth Hyannis starter Andrew Doyle (Oklahoma) left a pitch out over the plate and Brian Pruitt (Stetson) gave it a two-RBI ride over the left field fence.

    Tied at 3-3 entering the seventh, the Mets pushed a run across. In the bottom of the frame Satin hit a bases loaded single through the left side of the infield, scoring two and giving Bourne a 5-4 lead, which they held onto to win.

    Wade Kapteyn (Evansville) got the start for the Braves and went three and a third before turning it over to Jesse Haney (UNC-Wilmington). Bourne used five pitchers, with Matt Gorgen picking up the win in two innings of relief. Jordan Flasher (George Mason) earned his third save of the summer, pitching a scoreless ninth.

    Former Cape League historian Bruce Hack reports that Kevin Hoef's 13-game hitting streak is the third longest in Braves history, and one short of the team record shared by David Cash (2006) and Peter Tucci (1995).

    Through 22 games the Braves had scored 123 runs. He points out that that is more than they scored in the entire seasons of 2001 (118), 2002 (106), 2004 (110) and 2006 (113). The 12 home runs are all ready the ninth best in a season for Bourne.