By DAN PAWLOWSKI
WAKEFIELD — If the 2nd inning of last night’s Twi League Finals Game 1 is any indication, then we might need some more daylight down at Moulton.
The sun was already well on its way by the time the Brewers and Loafers got through two frames with a combined 13 runs scored, all of which came in the 2nd inning after the Loaf seemed to gain control with a 4-run top half before the Brewers responded with 9 in the bottom half to set the tone for not just the game, but certainly the series.
For Brewers starter Colin Jaena (7IP, 8H, 4R, 3ER, 6K, 2BB), the 2nd would be the only inning in which he would give up a run, attacking the zone with the lead and shutting the Loaf out the rest of the way as the Brew Crew took a 1-0 series lead with an 11-4 victory.
Game 2 will take place on Wednesday night, 5:45 p.m. back at Moulton.
Dom Sorrentino had the Loaf’s biggest hit of the 2nd as his 2-RBI single with two strikes won a good battle against Jaena to give the Loafers a 4-0 lead. They scored their first run on a throwing error and after Nate Ickes singled to load the bases, James Beaton grounded out to score Jared Pavey.
The Brewers wasted no time in slowing down that momentum in the bottom of the 2nd, starting with a leadoff double by Brendan Casey (2-for-2, 2HBP) on a high fly to left in which the biggest of Moulton’s many trees in play was in a bad spot for Matt Russo who looked like he had a good read on it before the ball kept carrying and the tree got in the way.
After an infield single by Jaena (2-for-4, 2RBI) and a walk to Jack Berinato, Steve Morganelli came through with a 2-RBI base hit to get the Brew on the board while also slicing the deficit in half.
Still with no outs and the bases loaded, the best-hitting team in the Twi was just getting started as Drew Betts followed with a 2-RBI single of his own to tie the game. Chris Casey’s (3-for-4, 2RBI) first of two RBI singles on the day gave the Brewers the lead for good and later with one out and the bases loaded again, Jaena helped himself with a 2-RBI double down the left field line, finally chasing Loaf starter Jordan Fauci as the Brewers went up 8-4. Berinato grounded out but brought another run home before reliever Nate Ickes ended the inning with a strikeout.
A sac fly by John Halsey in the 3rd pushed the lead to 10-4 and Chris Casey’s second RBI single in the 6th led to the 11-4 advantage.
Altogether, the Brewers had 11 hits with Chris Casey, Brendan Casey, Fiore and Jaena leading the way. Five different players had 2 RBI’s with Halsey, Morganelli and Betts joining Chris Casey and Jaena.
The final four innings took about the same amount of time as the first two, allowing the game to finish up with just enough visibility for Jaena to put the finishing touches on another complete game victory as the top-seeded Brew Crew moved to 3-0 in the playoffs.
The Loafers will have a good chance to respond in Wednesday’s Game 2, thanks in large part to Nate Ickes who powered through 4.2 innings (3H, 2ER, 3BB, 4HBP, 4K) to not only keep his team within striking distance but also save some other arms for the rest of the series, most especially his brother Luke who could take the ball for Game 2.
As far as runs go, the Loaf, whose 8 hits in Game 1 were just three shy of the Brewers, have plenty of sluggers to keep up with the Brewers. This best-of-five Finals is just getting started.
Game 3 will take place on Friday night at 5:45 p.m.