The Top Tier Aviators took on the Islip Owls Baseball Club on Saturday morning in a LI Boys of Summer 15u American doubleheader. The two games featured a mix of almost everything; good defense, good pitching and a lot of offense.
The Aviators ended up with the upper hand on the Owls today, as they won game two of the twin bill after game one ended in a tie.
Game 1
This one ends in a 4-4 tie, great job by Ascher to retire the last 3 outs in a row.
Game 2 coming up shortly. pic.twitter.com/z8AlieQIPV
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) July 12, 2025
Game one of the doubleheader started off slow on the offensive side of things, with only 1 run being scored in the first 3 innings of the contest.
Harrison McManus would toe the rubber for the Aviators while Aiden Gibbs would take the ball for the Owls to start. Both of the two starting pitchers did a great job of limiting offense for the opposing lineups.
The 1st inning was a short one, with both McManus and Gibbs working 1-2-3 innings. In the top of the 2nd, McManus would find himself in some trouble, with two runners reaching on an error and a walk. But he navigated through it with excellence, notching all three outs via strikeout to get himself out of it.
The Aviators then took their first lead of the day in the bottom half of the 2nd frame. Tyler O’Mahoney ripped a 2-out double to left-center giving them their first base runner of the game. The next batter, Tristan Robles, ripped a ground ball at the first baseman which kicked into shallow left field allowing O’Mahoney to come around and give his team a 1-0 advantage.
Gibbs limited the damage though, forcing a groundout to strand the bases loaded and send the game into the 3rd inning.
McManus did a great job at attacking hitters with first pitch strikes, getting ahead 0-1 as opposed to 1-0 is huge for how efficient a starter can be during an outing. He stranded the bases loaded in the top of the 3rd with a huge strikeout.
The next bit of offense came in the bottom of the 4th, off the bats of the Aviators once again. O’Mahoney would stay involved with an RBI single, and then Robles would notch his 2nd RBI of the game on a groundout. This gave the Aviators a 3-0 lead heading into the 5th.
Gibbs finished his outing after the 4th, with 4 innings pitched, 5 hits, 3 runs, 3 walks and 5 strikeouts.
The Owls would not be put away without a fight though, as they scraped across their first runs of the day in the top of the 5th inning. Jordan Haines drilled a 2-R triple to deep left field cutting the Aviators lead to 1, and then Gibbs would help himself with an RBI single to drive in Haines.
This inning would also see the end of the day for McManus. He finished with 4.2 innings pitched, 2 hits, 3 runs, 4 walks and 9 strikeouts, a solid outing for the Aviators pitcher.
Due to the time limit, the 6th inning would end up being the final frame in this one. It also would be where we see the first lead of the day for the Owls, as Nathan Krakaur grounded out to first to drive in a run and make it a 4-3 Owls lead.
With their backs against the walls, the Aviators came through to tie the game at 4 apiece. Connor Minihane laid down a perfect bunt, but then the pitcher threw the ball away to allow DJ Whitmer to come around and score.
Huge props to Owls pitcher Marco Ascher, who came in after Gibbs, he pitched a 1-2-3 5th inning and then stayed locked in under pressure to retire the last three Aviators hitters to end this one at a 4-4 tie.
Game 2
Aviators hold on to win 7-6 over the Owls in 5 innings. pic.twitter.com/Cg7SKHzzXi
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) July 12, 2025
The start to game two was the exact opposite as the first game of this doubleheader. After Owls starter Hunter DePinto left the Aviators scoreless in the top half of the 1st, the Owls would go on to score 5 runs in the bottom half.
Here’s how it happened.
The first 2 runs came off the bat of DePinto, who smacked a 2-RBI double to deep left field. Next Tyler Drago drove him in, with an RBI single to shallow right field. The 4th run came on a RBI hit by pitch to Reid Thornton, and finally the 5th run was on a Joseph Farrell single up the middle.
The Owls held that lead, thanks in part to great pitching by DePinto, until the top of the 3rd. This is where the flood gates really opened for the Aviators offense.
After their first two batters of the inning went down via strikeout, the Aviators would go on to score 7 runs, with 10 consecutive batters reaching base. Every single run that was scored came on an RBI walk or hit by pitch, except for an RBI single by Austin Matz.
As the 4th inning began at East Islip High School, only 13 minutes remained in the time limit of an hour and 50 minutes.
Ascher would bring the Owls within 1, making it 7-6, with an RBI double into the left-center gap.
The Aviators would strand the game-tying run on second base to end the inning but luckily for the Owls, there was 2 minutes left in the time limit and the 5th inning would be played.
Unfortunately the Owls’ luck ran out, and Brayden Kruk locked down the game on the mound in the 5th for the Aviators to finish off their 7-6 victory.
O’Mahoney played a big factor in both games for the Aviators. He went 2 for 3, with a double, 2 RBI, 2 R, and 3 walks, while also catching the entire second game.
Axcess Baseball had the opportunity to speak with O’Mahoney following the games.
“I’m not trying to do too much at the plate.” He said, “I just have to make sure I know the situation I’m in, and whatever situation it is I am trying to do whatever is best for the team.”
“I just try and make sure I am ready for every inning.” O’Mahoney added.
With the win and the tie, the Aviators improved to a record of 6-1-3, sitting in 3rd place of the 15u American Division. While the Owls drop to a record of 8-3-2, right behind them in 4th place.
