By Tucker Terranova
Consecutive hit by pitches – the second of which nabbing Luke Ciminello (Stony Brook) – extends the Breakers’ lead heading into the bottom of the seventh.
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When Luke Ciminiello (Stony Brook) stepped up to the plate in the sixth inning with a chance to give the Southampton Breakers their first lead of the day, it was a familiar scenario for his team.
After starting the season winless through four games, the Breakers have now won five of their last seven — four of those wins coming in come-from-behind fashion. Fueled by Ciminiello’s go-ahead single up the middle, the Breakers answered the Sag Harbor Whalers’ lone run in the third with three unanswered to secure a 3-1 victory.
Head coach Rob Cafiero believed from the start that his club had the talent to defend its title — they just needed to put it all together.
“Our hitters are starting to get a little more comfortable at the plate and are having better at-bats,” Cafiero said after the win. “That, along with pitchers throwing strikes and good defense, is a good combination for us to be competitive.”
The Breakers got a complete team effort, including strong performances on the mound from Brody Minder (West Chester) and Marco Citro (Holy Cross).
In what developed into a pitcher’s duel, Minder and Whalers starter Derrick Dellea (Lasell) each posted zeroes through the early frames.
Minder ran into trouble in the third when Christopher Morabito (Bucknell) lined a one-out single. After recording a strikeout, Minder surrendered a deep RBI double to the gap from Matteo Cubello (St. Anselm), scoring Morabito and putting Sag Harbor up 1-0.
That would be all the offense the Whalers managed. Minder and Citro combined to hold Sag Harbor to just one hit the rest of the way. Minder earned the win after five innings of one-run, three-hit ball, while Citro notched the save with two scoreless innings, allowing just one hit.
“Brody and Marco did a great job tonight,” Cafiero said. “A lot of good things happen when pitchers throw strikes. I was very happy with the way they attacked Sag Harbor’s hitters, and our defense did a great job behind them.”
After a quiet start at the plate, Southampton’s offense came alive in the fifth and provided plenty of run support.
Tim Denet (Le Moyne) opened the inning with a ground-rule double to left field, prompting Whalers head coach Will Tucker to turn to reliever Eric Wallick. After a walk, Lukas Egenhauser (Montclair State) singled to score Denet and tie the game at 1-1.
In the sixth, Ciminiello gave the Breakers a lead they wouldn’t give back, driving in Nick Soglik (Rowan) with a seeing-eye single back up the middle that beat the drawn-in infield.
Southampton added insurance in the seventh. After loading the bases, Ciminiello was hit by a pitch — the Breakers’ second in a row — to force in a run and push the lead to 3–1.
Citro returned for the bottom of the seventh and delivered an eight-pitch, 1-2-3 inning to seal the win.
With the victory, Southampton improved to 5-4-2 and now sits in second place in the Hamptons Collegiate Baseball League (HCBL) standings. Sag Harbor fell to 3-4-3, good for fifth place.
The Breakers return to action tomorrow at home against the South Shore Clippers, while the Whalers will travel west to face the Westhampton Aviators. Both games are scheduled for 5 p.m.
