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| Koger pitches earlier in the season. /Crowley Photo |
At times it wasn’t pretty, but in the end the Vermont Mountaineers got what they were looking for with a series sweep over Laconia with Tuesday’s 7-4 victory.
Vermont will now advance to the New England Collegiate Baseball League division finals for the second year in a row. Daniel Koger carried an unconventional no-hitter into the seventh inning as he was charged with four runs after a rain delay of nearly two hours.
It was just one of those nights.
Koger held the Muskrats hitless through six-plus innings, despite struggling mightily with his command. He let 10 runners reach base, issuing six walks while hitting two batters — both season highs. A solo home run from Nick Solak and a pair of late insurance runs put it away as the Mountaineers picked up the victory.
“I think tonight was the first time of the year I had all three pitches working really well with movement,” Koger said. “I’m really proud of everything this team has accomplished during the season and now through the first round.”
Solak scored three runs and went 3-for-5 with a pair of RBIs, and Vermont knocked Laconia out of the playoffs and advanced past the first round for the sixth time in the franchise’s 11-year history.
The Northern Division champions will open the next round Thursday against Sanford or Keene. The No. 2 Mainers host the No. 3 Swamp Bats in a winner-take-all game tonight. Meanwhile, it was another flop to end the season by the Muskrats, who have been swept in the first round in four of their eight playoff appearances, dating back to their Manchester Silkworm days.
Vermont jumped ahead 1-0 in the third inning behind an RBI single from Solak, who was the spark of the Mountaineers offense after going 1-for-4 in the series opener. They scratched across two more runs in the fourth against NECBL strikeout king Shea Spitzbarth, thanks to back-to-back RBI singles from Casey Rodrigue and Trey West.
Solak struck out to lead off the fifth, but the ball got by the catcher and he reached on an error. Blake Tiberi moved him over on a sacrifice bunt in which he also reached on an error by first basemen Ben Miller, who dropped the throw — one of four Muskrats errors on the night. Solak came home to score on a wild pitch in a wild up-and-down affair.
Meanwhile, Koger was holding Laconia hitless despite struggling with his command. It eventually got to him in the fifth, as the Muskrats chipped into the Vermont lead after back-to-back walks from Koger put runners on base. He got a runner at third on a bunt back to the pitcher, but an error at second brought home Laconia’s first run.
“A lot of the location problems I had were just me trying to do too much,” Koger said. “Then a few others were probably due to a lack of concentration starting innings, something that I can fix.”
After Solak hit a solo home run to leadoff the seventh, his first homer of the season, Koger was chased in the bottom of the frame. He hit second basemen Matt Byrne — one of two times on the night — and then walked Karl Ellison. He got two quick outs before exiting after a walk loaded the bases.
Wiest entered and quickly threw back-to-back wild pitches to cut Vermont’s lead to two, and an RBI single from Braxton Martinez— the first and only hit for Laconia — drew the Muskrats within one run. Wiest, however, settled down and retired the next four batters in order.
“Ty (Wiest) did a great job not letting my mess escalate,” Koger said. “We have a great group of guys and we all want to be here and finish it off for Vermont.”
Vermont rallied for two more insurance runs in the top of the ninth and All-Star closer Jared Gesell struck out three in a 1-2-3 inning to close the door on Laconia’s season.
Spitzbarth took the loss as he allowed four runs on six hits over five innings. He struck out six and issued a lone walk.
Tuesday marked back-to-back quality starts from the Mountaineers starters, as both Koger and Monday’s starter Ryan Davis pitched into the seventh and allowed three earned runs or less. Neither will be available for the division finals, however, as they both topped 100 pitches. Manager Joe Brown could turn to a variety of starting options, including Jim McDade and Cameron Sorgie.
However, Vermont first gets a well-deserved day off and returns to action Thursday night at Recreation Field against Keene or Sanford.
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