CLAREMONT BEATS BRATTLEBORO IN CRVBL ACTION

By Kevin McElhinney, CRVBL

The defending Connecticut River Valley Baseball League champion Claremont Cardinals held off a surprisingly strong effort by the winless Brattleboro River Rats and came out with a 6 to 3 victory in recent CRVBL action.

The game at Claremont’s Barnes Park featured strong pitching by Claremont’s Mike Wells and Brattleboro’s Todd Bell, both of whom pitched complete games. Cardinal third baseman Justin Pierce singled, doubled, scored a run and drove in two more, while John Waitekus of the River Rats went three for three with a pair of RBI.

League action this weekend features the Walpole Wild Blue at Claremont Friday night at 6, while fans will be treated to a pair of games at Dummerston Field on Sunday. Putney hosts the Keene Black Dawgs at 10:00 a.m. while Brattleboro plays the Newport Polar Bears at 1:00. Admission to all CRVBL games is free, and to learn more about the area’s only adult baseball league, visit the league website at http://www.crvbl.org/ .

STANDINGS

Chester/Saxtons 8 1
Claremont 6 2
Sunapee 6 3
Walpole 5 4
Newport 4 4
Putney 3 5
Keene 2 5
Brattleboro 0 10

PUTNEY, SUNAPEE AND WALPOLE WIN LATEST CRVBL GAMES

By Kevin McElhinney, CRVBL

The Putney Fossils, Sunapee Old Lakers and the Walpole Wild Blue all collected wins as the 2013 Connecticut River Valley Baseball League season moved into its second half. All eight CRVBL teams will be in action over the next week.

Putney handed the defending CRVBL champion Clearment Cardinals its second defeat of the season by a 7-2 score at Dummerston field. The Fossils took control of the game with a four run second inning. Richard Bissell picked up the complete game victory, while Steve Kapril had 3 hits and knocked in five runs. Right fielder Josh Coursen of Putney preserved the lead with a spectacular diving catch with a runner in scoring position.

In Sunapee, the Old Lakers moved into third place by beating the Newport Polar Bears, 7-4. Tom Frederick pitched the full nine innings for Sunapee, giving up seven hits and striking out four. Old Lakers second basemen Jake Stout had three hits and drove in a pair of runs.

Walpole picked up its fifth win of the season with a 21 hit explosion while beating the Brattleboro River Rats, 15-2. Chris Ballou let the hit parade, going four for five with three RBI. Drew Davis went seven innings on the mound for the win, with Joey Parrott closing things out in relief.

This Saturday, Brattleboro hosts the McGill’s baseball team of Walpole at 5:00 in a non-league game at Dummerston Field. with any voluntary donations by spectators going to the American Cancer Society Relay for Life. The River Rats then travel to Claremont for a league game against the Cardinals at 11:00 a.m. Also at 11:00 on Sunday morning, the Keene Black Dawgs host Sunapee at Keene State College and Newport takes on Putney at Bates Memorial Field in Newport. On Tuesday evening June 25th, the Chester/Saxtons Crush will play Newport in a 6:30 game in Walpole. All CRVBL games are free of charge, and to learn more about the league of area adult town teams, please visit http://www.crvbl.org/ .

STANDINGS

Chester/Saxtons 7 1
Claremont 5 2
Sunapee 6 3
Walpole 5 3
Newport 4 4
Putney 3 5
Keene 2 5
Brattleboro 0 8