By Maxwell Paul McLaughlin
Orleans, M.A. – The Brewster Whitecaps won their third in a row Thursday night by a score of 7-2.
The Whitecaps won another early-season divisional matchup against the Orleans Firebirds. It is a huge step forward early in the season for the Whitecaps.
The Whitecaps’ big third inning was the driving force in their win against the Firebirds. The Whitecaps scored five runs in the top of the third to make the game out of reach.
The first two runs of the inning came off of a Parks Harber (Georgia) double. Harber in only his second game of the season, got the Whitecaps in front, and they never looked back.
The Whitecaps then pushed across another run in the third courtesy of a Grayson Tatrow (Abilene Christian) two-RBI single.
The final two runs of the inning came from a familiar face in Kurtis Byrne (TCU). Byrne had a two-RBI single to make the game 5-0. Byrne finished with two hits in his return to the Whitecaps.
“It’s like nostalgia, especially after winning the championship last year, and being back these last three days have been a blast,” Byrne said. “I am very excited going forward with this team.”
The Whitecaps tacked on their final two runs by getting a single run in the fourth and a single run in the 7th.
The Firebirds of Orleans were able to grab two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning off Will Greer (Bucknell).
A Whitecaps starting pitcher delivered a masterful performance for the third straight game. Henry Leake ( Boston College) went five scoreless innings and struck out eight batters.
“I just worked on filling out the zone and throwing my pitches, it was a lot of fun, and the energy of the cape is unmatched,” Leake said.
The Whitecaps have won three straight and will be back home Friday night for the first red Friday of the year.