By GABBI RIGGI
LYNN– The North Shore Navigators took both of the games against the Bristol Blues in a doubleheader on Thursday. The victory was the team’s first at home and improved its record to 4-12 while Bristol fell back to 8-11.
Thursday’s pair of victories was reminiscent of last year’s turnaround of a doubleheader sweep in Brockton that turned a then 1-12 team into one that ended the season with a 29-27 record.
The Navigators scored their first run in the fourth inning after Daane Berezo (VCU) singled to get on and was quickly joined on base by Tyler Kapuscinski (Marist) who worked a walk. Chris Cabrera (Broward) singled in Berezo to get on the board.
Brad Douglas (Rhode Island College) singled to start runners on base with two outs and was brought in by a Joey Pena (St. Thomas Aquinas) triple. Pena would come across the plate himself on a throwing error from third to mark the final run in the first game.
Austen Michel was strong again on the mound, allowing one run and striking out four in a seven inning effort. The Navigators offense offered a great deal of run support in the fourth and fifth inning. The first run in the second game came off of the bat of Ted Leathersich who drove a long hit off the base of the wall to bring in Kapuscinski.
Nick Fuhrmann hit a solo shot to deep left center field to put up the first the run of the fourth; Douglas soon followed him home on a pass ball. Alex Brickman doubled to score Berezo and another double by Kapuscinski followed to stretch the Navs lead to 5-1.
Douglas and Nate Rossi (Keene State) both worked walks to load the bases. MacDaniel Singleton smacked a bases clearing triple to bring in the final three runs.
The Navigators have taken three of their last five and look to match Bristol once again on Friday in Connecticut. They host the Seacoast Mavericks on Sunday.