Big Train Bats Come Alive in Decisive Semifinal Game over Senators
The Big Train tallied 23 hits in a 20-5 victory over Southern Maryland, as they advance to the League Championship Series in search of their 13th CRSCBL title.
By Jackson Lynch
One night after Bethesda’s bats went silent, they could not have been any louder.
After being held to three hits in Sunday’s Game 2 shutout loss, the Bethesda Big Train responded with one of their biggest offensive performances of the season Monday night, pounding out 23 hits in a 20-5, seven-inning run-rule victory over the Southern Maryland Senators in the decisive Game 3 of the Cal Ripken Sr. Collegiate Baseball League semifinal series at Shirley Povich Field.
The win sends Bethesda to the championship series, where they will face the top-seeded Olney Cropdusters beginning Tuesday evening.
The Big Train wasted no time responding after Sunday’s loss. Austin Monahan (Florida Southwestern) retired the Senators in order in the top of the first before Bethesda erupted for six runs on seven hits in the bottom half. TJ Gramesty (Florida Atlantic) and Brennon Wright (South Alabama) opened the inning with back-to-back singles before Emilio Gonzalez (Nova Southeastern) reached on an error to load the bases with nobody out.
Although Southern Maryland starter Ryan Conrad (Villanova) struck out Zachary Malvasio (Central Florida) for the first out, Bethesda never slowed down. Logan Ponnett (George Mason) opened the scoring with an RBI single before Casey Carpenter (UNC Wilmington) and Cal Johnson (Maryland) followed with RBI singles of their own. Ryan Foscolo (Kentucky) ripped a two-run double into center to stretch the lead to 5-0 and Will Haacke (James Madison) capped the inning with an RBI single as the Big Train batted around and grabbed a commanding 6-0 advantage.
Monahan followed with another 1-2-3 inning in the second before Bethesda went right back to work offensively. Wright singled to begin the inning before Gonzalez launched a two-run homer into the trees beyond the right-field fence. One batter later, Malvasio crushed a solo shot over the batter’s eye in center field to make it 9-0.
Through two innings, Bethesda had already collected 10 hits while Southern Maryland had yet to put a runner on base.
The Senators finally answered in the third. Southern Maryland tallied their first three hits of the night to load the bases with nobody out. Cole Rhame (Richmond) followed with a two-run double into the gap before Jackson Hays (Yale) beat out an RBI infield single to trim the deficit to 9-3.
Each time the Senators threatened, however, Bethesda had an answer. After Southern Maryland scored three runs in the third, Foscolo answered with a three-run homer in the bottom of the fourth to restore a nine-run lead.
Southern Maryland chipped away again in the fifth. Chase Fulford (Binghamton) doubled to lead off the inning and came around to score on Rhame’s RBI single. Zachary Anderson (Binghamton) followed with an RBI double to cut the lead to 12-5.
An inning later, the Big Train put the game out of reach with seven runs on eight hits. Gonzalez started the scoring with an RBI single that brought home Wright. Malvasio followed with an RBI triple, then Ponnett doubled in another run and Johnson added a sacrifice fly. Haacke later drove in a run with a double before Jack Gagen (Norfolk State) and Wright capped the inning with RBI singles, pushing the lead to 19-5.
Malvasio added one more in the sixth, leading off the inning with his second home run of the night to make it 20-5.
Jordan Capuano (Youngstown State) retired the Senators in order in the seventh to complete the run-rule victory.
It was a complete team effort at the plate. All nine Big Train starters recorded a hit and scored at least one run while eight of the nine drove in a run. Five different players recorded at least three hits as Bethesda finished 23-for-38 (.605) with nine extra-base hits, including four doubles, one triple and four home runs. The Big Train struck out just twice in 43 plate appearances.
Foscolo led the charge, finishing 3-for-4 with a double, a home run, two runs scored and a game-high five RBIs. He finished a triple shy of the cycle. His two-run double helped fuel the six-run first inning before his three-run homer in the fourth erased Southern Maryland’s three-run third inning.
Malvasio put together a spectacular power display, going 3-for-5 with two home runs, a triple, three RBIs, three runs scored and 11 total bases. His solo homer followed Gonzalez’s two-run blast in the second to make it 9-0. He added an RBI triple during Bethesda’s seven-run fifth before leading off the sixth with his second homer of the night to cap the scoring.
Wright reached base in all five plate appearances, finishing 4-for-4 with a double, a walk, an RBI and three runs scored. Ponnett added four hits, a double, two RBIs and three runs scored. Gonzalez drove in three runs and scored three more while Haacke collected three hits, a double and two RBIs.
Johnson finished with two RBIs and two runs scored while Carpenter added an RBI and crossed the plate twice. After entering for Gramesty behind the plate, Gagen also contributed with an RBI single as Bethesda received production from nearly every spot in the lineup.
Monahan earned the win after allowing five runs over five innings without issuing a walk. Bradley Gagen followed with a scoreless sixth inning before Capuano retired the side in order in the seventh, striking out the final batter to complete the run-rule victory. The pair combined for two hitless innings and did not allow a walk.
Rhame was Southern Maryland’s most impactful player, finishing 2-for-4 with a double, three RBIs, a run scored and a stolen base. He drove in three of the Senators’ five runs. Fulford added a double and scored in the fifth while Anderson contributed an RBI double.
Southern Maryland’s season came to an end after another strong summer, but the Big Train’s relentless offense proved too much to overcome in the decisive Game 3.
Bethesda now turns its attention to the championship series, where it will travel to face the top-seeded Olney Cropdusters in Game 1 on Tuesday at 6 p.m. The Big Train will be looking to capture their fourth consecutive championship and 13th total, while the Cropdusters search for their first title.