Quinn Home Run Breathes Hope into Falmouth Playoff Bid

HYANNIS — On paper, it wasn’t supposed to go like this.

Ahead of the visiting Falmouth Commdores (16-26-1), 3-1, heading into the top of the 8th inning last night at McKeon Park, the host and first place Hyannis Harbor Hawks (23-19-1) watched that lead completely dissipate with one swing of Heath Quinn’s (Samford) bat.

Falmouth’s Heath Quinn (Samford) belted an 8th inning two-run homer and a 9th inning double to pace the Commodores to victory last night.
Sean Walsh/Capecod.com Sports

Falmouth’s Evan Skoug laced a single on the first pitch he saw from Hyannis righty Zach Girrens to lead off the 8th frame and then Quinn fouled off two Girrens’ offerings before crushing a game-tying bomb on an 0-2 count.

But things did not get better for the ‘Hawks.

Falmouth’s Boomer White (Texas A&M) followed Quinn’s blast with a single and then Tristan Gray (Rice) followed with his own basehit to put two men on. With no outs, McNeese State submariner Collin Kober came in to relieve Girrens and Kober immediately retired Falmouth’s Tate Blackman (Ole Miss) for the first out. Oregon State’s Caleb Hamilton then grounded out to second base but both White and Gray advanced.

With two outs and men on second and third and the game tied at 3-3, Mississippi’s JB Woodman put the ball in play toward third base to plate the go ahead run and then Arizona’s JJ Matijevic opened the floodgates with a two-out, two-run double on a 1-0 count. Shane Benes (Missouri-Columbia) duplicated that effort with an RBI-double of his own and the table had finally been turned for the Commodores with a 7-3 lead.

In the bottom of the 8th inning, Hyannis loaded the bases with two outs and Jacksonville’s Austin Hays pinch-hit for Florida State’s Ben DeLuzio but the plan fizzled as Hays was struck out by Kansas righty Stephen Villines.

Falmouth tacked on two more runs in the top of the ninth when Quinn doubled and then came home on a Blackman RBI-double. Blackman scored to make it 9-3 on a Hamilton RBI-basehit.

Commodore righty Ben Ancheff (St. Thomas) got the win after 3.1 innings of middle relief, his first win of the summer.

Falmouth will have its work cut out for it tonight when it welcomes second place Bourne (5:30 pm) for one last bid at garnering a playoff spot, but the Wareham Gatemen and Cotuit Kettleers will have to lose in order for that win to push Falmouth ahead in the standings.

— Written by Sean Walsh, sports editor for www.capecod.com. His email is [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @coachwalshccbm