The Norwich Sea Unicorns lost a heart breaker last night falling to the Worcester Bravehearts in walk off fashion. Worcester’s 9th inning comeback drops Norwich to 16-11 and returns the Sea Unicorns to 2nd in the Future League Standings.
Norwich starter Hector Alejandro ran into trouble in the home first after striking out the leadoff batter. A single and a walk gave the Bravehearts runners at 1st and 2nd with one out. Alejandro retired the next batter on a fly out to left center field which allowed the lead runner to advance to 3rd. Dylan Lapointe came through for the host ringing a double off the wall in left center field to give Worcester an early 2-0 lead.
The Sea Unicorns struck for a run in the 2nd to cut the deficit in half. Garrett Larsen began the frame with a leadoff base hit but was later caught stealing to erase any traffic on the basepaths. Norwich’s offense rallied with a pair of outs begun by MD Conner, who lined a single into right. Aidan Baglino drew a walk to set the table for Nick Sturino with two on and two out. Sturino came through for Norwich, punching a single into center to get Norwich on the board.
Worcester reclaimed their 2-run advantage in the bottom of the inning. The Bravehearts continued their early success against Alejandro, recording a pair of base knocks to open the inning. An immediate threat was brewing for Worcester with runners at the corners and no outs. A wild pitch to the backstop produced the 3rd run of the game for Worcester and advanced the base runner from 2nd to 3rd. Alejandro escaped any further damage with a pair of strikeouts and a ground out.
The seesaw affair continued in the 3rd and 4th as both teams continued to trade runs. Norwich sliced the Worcester lead to 1 in 3rd and once again the host restored their 2-run edge in the home 4th. Trey Porter began the 3rd for Norwich with a double down the line in right and was later brought home on a fielder’s choice ground out. Jacob Hurrell took flight for the first time this summe,r clearing the deck in right field to restore the 2-run lead for Worcester.
Sea Unicorns starter Hector Alejandro had his night come to an end after allowing a one out base hit later in the frame. Alejandro finished his night allowing 4 runs on 7 hits in 3.1 innings. Reliever Ethan Lewis was brought into the ballgame for Norwich with one out and one on in the 4th. Lewis continued his strong start to the summer working 3.1 scoreless innings in relief. The Yale product has not allowed an earned run in 11.2 innings with Norwich this summer.
Norwich evened the score at 4 in the 6th with a pair of runs. The Sea Unicorns got to work quickly loading the bases with no outs. Nick Sturino delivered once again for Norwich with his 2nd hit in the ballgame to drive home Larsen and Callahan. Unfortunately, the inning ended abruptly after Worcester reliever Owen Tahnk was able to turn a 1-6-3 inning ending double play.
Trey Porter gave Norwich the lead in the 7th inning with his first home run of the summer. The Ambler, PA native has now recorded back-to-back multi-hit performances and has 3 runs in his last 2 games. Norwich extended their lead in the 8th taking advantage of an error committed by the Worcester right fielder who dropped a potential inning ending fly ball, but instead the visitors were able to plate their 6th run of the night.
Sea Unicorns reliever Callen Powers faced immediate danger in the home 8th allowing the first 2 batters he faced to reach base safely. Norwich made a pitching change for reliever Jimmy Mulvaney to help preserve the lead. After issuing a walk to the first batter he faced to load the bases, Mulvaney was able to punch out the next batter for the 1st out in the inning. The Worcester lead off hitter trimmed the Norwich lead to 1 with an RBI single to right. Mulvaney was able to battle his way out of the inning striking out the next 2 batters he faced to keep Norwich in front heading to the 9th.
Aidan Greene held the Norwich offense in check in the 9th to keep Worcester within 1. Jimmy Mulvaney returned to the rubber in the 9th looking to complete the 6 out save. Unfortunately, things went awry in a hurry as the Bravehearts quickly tied the game with just 2 batters and did not waste any outs. A single and a triple to begin the frame leveled the ballgame at 6. Mulvaney retired the next batter he faced on a fly out to shallow center field. Norwich elected to intentionally walk Worcester’s pinch hitter to set up a potential inning-ending double play. A hit batsman loaded the bases for Worcester and set the stage for Jacob Hurrell, who delivered once again, dumping a base hit into right to win the ballgame for Worcester.
Norwich is back in action tonight at home for a meeting with the 1st place Westfield Starfires. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. EST. Friday night fireworks by American Fireworks returns to Dodd Stadium tonight presented by Liberty Bank.