Wildcats lose in Halifax, beat Truro

BY JOHN DECOSTE

jdecoste@kentvilleadvertiser.ca

NovaNewsNow.com

The Kentville Wildcats have leveled out after a fast start, but remain in contention in the Nova Scotia Senior Baseball League after splitting a pair of games this week.

After losing 8-3 Tuesday in Halifax, the Wildcats used a real team effort to top the Truro Bearcats 4-2 Wednesday in Kentville.

In Halifax, winning pitcher Steve Ivey stymied the Kentville, allowing no runs on just two hits through six innings. The Wildcats finished with three hits off three Halifax pitchers.

Meanwhile, Ivey’s teammates got him two runs in the second off Kentville starter Trevor Wamback, one in the third and four more in the fourth. Chris Gallivan, Shawn Peverill and Adam Lucas each had a single and double to lead an 11-hit Canadians’ offense.

With his team trailing 8-0, Ryan Brothers generated all three runs Kentville would score on one swing of the bat, launching a three-run homer off reliever Andrew MacIntosh in the top of the seventh.

Kentville stranded two baserunners after Brothers’ homer in the seventh and had two on base in the top of the ninth, but Perry Deveaux struck out Ian Lockhart to end the game.

Great pitching at Memorial Park

The following evening at Memorial Park Kentville got great pitching from Kevin Nichols, who allowed only two runs on seven hits through eight innings, striking out six and walking none.

Truro had two on base with one out in the top of the ninth, but Pete Sonier struck out Jeff Chisholm and got Tyler Delaney to foul out on a nice catch by Wamback to save the victory for Nichols.

Craig Higgins, despite allowing four runs on 10 hits, went all the way and pitched well in a losing effort, though he was hurt by two errors behind him in the field.

Truro opened the scoring in the top of the first inning on an RBI double by Guy Pelerine, but Kentville tied the score in the bottom of the second, Rob Shepherd’s RBI double scoring Luke Smith, who had doubled also.

The Wildcats took a 3-1 lead in the bottom of the third with a two-run double by Curtis Falls scoring Ian Lockhart from second and a hustling Wamback all the way from first.

After Joe MacPherson led off the top of the fourth with a solo homer over the right field fence, the score remained 3-2 Kentville until the Wildcats’ Ryan Brothers provided an insurance run almost by himself.

Brothers led off the bottom of the seventh by beating out an infield single, his second hit of the game, stole second, took third on a wild pitch and tagged up and scored after the catch on Ryan Pearl’s liner to centrefield.

The win improved Kentville’s record to six wins and four losses. Truro fell to 3-4.

The Wildcats are scheduled to host Moncton and Chatham this Saturday in interprovincial play and are in action next Friday at home against Dartmouth in the make-up of their June 10 rainout.