The Falmouth Commodores defeated the Hyannis Harbor Hawks 8-5 on Sunday night, providing the club with a bounce back win at McKeon Park.
Falmouth’s offense made some noise in this one, posting six runs through the first two innings of the contest. Backstop Jonathan French continued to have success in Hyannis, going 2-for-5 with two RBIs and a pair of runs scored. Walter Ahuna also impressed, as he went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored.
The ‘Dores had a solid night on the defensive side of the ball, recording their first game in which they did not commit an error. The club’s pitching staff also had a productive evening, as Adam Stone, Tyler Tuthill and Andrew Yancik combined for five scoreless innings of work.
The Commodores’ bats made their presence known immediately, erupting for five runs in the first inning. Jake Dukart opened the scoring with a bases-clearing double, plating Ahuna, Michael Curialle and Brayden Taylor. Later in the frame, French launched a two-run home run to right field, scoring Dukart and providing Falmouth with an early 5-0 lead.
Manager Jeff Trundy said that the club’s early offensive outburst set the tone for the contest.
“It was great to come out and get that big first inning,” Trundy said. “That was awesome. I thought we strung a lot of good at-bats together.”
The ‘Dores extended their lead to 6-0 the following frame, as Ahuna drove home Kodie Kolden with an RBI single to left-center field.
Ahuna said that his successful night at the plate can be attributed to his approach, in which he is working to hit the ball to the opposite field.
“I’m focusing on driving the ball the other way,” Ahuna said. “[The coaches have] been teaching me some stuff and I’ve been taking it to the field.”
Falmouth and Hyannis then traded zeros until the top of the fifth inning, when the Commodores plated a run to take a 7-0 advantage. Kolden lined an RBI single to center field, bringing home French.
The Harbor Hawks’ bats woke up in the bottom half of the frame, scoring a pair of runs to cut the ‘Dores lead to 7-2. Marcos Pujols Hernandez led off the inning with a single, and later came around to score on a wild pitch. Caden Rose then hit an RBI single, driving in Caleb Pendleton.
Falmouth tacked on an insurance run in the seventh inning, extending its lead to 8-2 over Hyannis. Jace Bohrofen led off the frame with a ground-rule double to center field, and later came around to score on a wild pitch.
But the Harbor Hawks didn’t go down quietly, as they rallied in the bottom of the eighth inning to cut the ‘Dores lead to 8-5. Pujols Hernandez drove a three-run home run over the wall in right field to plate Jake Cunningham and Luke Mann.
This would hold as the final score, as Yancick pitched a scoreless ninth inning to secure the ‘Dores victory over Hyannis. The win improves the club’s record to 3-2-1 on the season. The Commodores will return to action on June 28, as they will take on the Wareham Gatemen at 6:45 p.m., from Spillane Field.
Click here for Sunday night’s box score.
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Click here for the 2021 Falmouth Commodores schedule.
Tommy Mumau can be reached at tmumau@ithaca.edu. Follow him on Twitter @tommymumau13.
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