LITTLE FALLS, NY—While the fireworks were canceled on Friday at Veteran’s Memorial Park, the Albany Dutchmen made sure the Mohawk Valley Diamond Dawgs ended not with a bang, but with a whimper.
Dylan D’Anna (Wappingers Falls, NY/Siena College) pitched six solid innings for the Dutchmen, as his bullpen only allowed two runs on five hits in Albany’s 3-2 win over the Diamond Dawgs.
Malcolm Nachmanoff (Boston, MA/Stony Brook University) would put the Dutchmen on the board first in the top of the fourth. His sacrifice grounder to Mohawk Valley shortstop Michael Conti (Glastonbury, CT/Fairfield University) would score Jack Gethings (Wallingford, CT/Fairfield University) and put Albany up 1-0 early.
Another sacrifice would double the Dutchmen’s lead in the fifth, as Micah McHugh (Zachary, LA/Univeristy of Mississippi) would fly one out to deep left field. That fly ball was deep enough to score Mychael Goudreau (Elk Grove, CA/Azusa Pacific University), who reached by virtue of an error.
The Dutchmen would extend the lead to three in the sixth, as Justin Childers (Pickerington, OH/Ohio Dominican University) would smack a double into left-center field. That hit by Childers would score JJ Shimko (Jacksonville, FL/University of South Carolina-Upstate).
Andrew Turner (King of Prussia, PA/Long Island University-Brooklyn) would come on in the eighth to replace Sean Mazzio (West Chester, PA/Wagner College), and he would make his debut on Friday night by smacking a sacrifice fly to deep left-center field. That fly ball would score Conti.
Michael Ketchmark (Dallas, TX/Dartmouth College) would start the bottom of the ninth with some early July 4thfireworks, as his solo blast to left-center field would bring the Diamond Dawgs back to within one at 3-2. That would be all that reliever Joe Pokrentowski (Syracuse, NY/College of St. Rose) would allow, however, as he would force Justin Fowler (Aliso Viejo, CA/ Dartmouth College) into a double play to close the book on the Diamond Dawgs.
D’Anna would pick up the win for Albany (13-12), who jump ahead of Mohawk Valley for third in the Eastern Division. Pokrentowski would pick up the save, while David Palmer (East Islip, NY/University of New Haven) picked up the loss for Mohawk Valley (12-12).
Both the Dutchmen and the Diamond Dawgs are on the road on Saturday. Albany heads to Cantine Memorial Veteran’s Field in Saugerties to face the Stallions. Mohawk Valley heads west to Colburn Park to face off against the Newark Pilots.
