Newport Gulls take down Martha's Vineyard Sharks 19-9 in high-scoring affair (2024)

MARTHA’S VINEYARD, MA – Crazy. Weird. Bizarre. No words can adequately sum up a wild Thursday night matchup between the Newport Gulls and Martha’s Vineyard Sharks at the Shark Tank. In a 19-9 win for the Gulls, there was truly a little bit of everything in a nearly four hour contest. When all was said and done, the two teams combined for 28 runs on just 18 hits with 11 total pitchers used, 22 combined walks and seven combined errors.

In a high-scoring affair, Newport wasted little time getting going in the early stages. Demitri Diamant started on the mound for Martha’s Vineyard and walked three of the first four batters he faced. After Nolan Stevens (Mississippi State) was caught stealing, there were two runners on base when Andrew Duncan (Florida State) stepped up to the plate and delivered a three-run homer to put the Gulls up 3-0.

The trend of Newport scoring runs would continue in the ensuing innings. After a Niko Brini (UConn) double, he was driven in by a Nolan Stevens single to make it 4-0. Diamant faced more trouble in the third as Dixon Williams (East Carolina) led off with a double and eventually scored on a wild pitch. Andrew Duncan (Florida State) got on base with a walk and was ultimately brought home by Tyler Minnick (Georgia Tech) to give the Gulls a 6-0 lead. TJ Schlageter replaced Diamant early in the inning and that was the start of a long bullpen game for the Sharks.

The fourth inning turned out to be one of just two in which Newport failed to score. Brian Young became Martha’s Vineyard’s third pitcher in the fifth and that’s when the Gulls extended their lead. Andrew Duncan (Florida State) tallied his second hit with a single to score Dixon Williams (East Carolina). Later in the inning, Jack Doyle (Northeastern) sent Duncan home with a sacrifice fly to give Newport an 8-0 lead. Eric Fettinger and Dante Pavone both pitched the sixth and the Gulls continued to pour it on. Newport loaded up the bases thanks to a couple of walks and an error. That was followed by another walk to Matt Ossenfort (Vanderbilt) which walked in Nolan Stevens. Then, Tyler Minnick was hit by a pitch to walk home Jake Burley (Wake Forest). Dixon Williams then came home from third on a passed ball. Up 11-0, the scoring continued with the only hit of the inning. Jack Doyle’s single scored Ossenfort and Minnick.

Down 13-0 in the sixth, the Sharks finally got on the board and scored their only two runs against Newport starting pitcher Jackson Teer (Trinity). Brayden Martin got on base with a walk and ultimately scored on an error. One batter later, Andrew Yu notched a single to drive in JD Suarez and make it 13-2. Teer’s night came to an end after the sixth, only allowing two hits with three walks and seven strikeouts.

The Gulls responded with more runs in the seventh frame. Jonah Conradt started the inning on the hill for the Sharks before Luke Brown eventually took over as their seventh pitcher of the night. A hit by pitch, walk and error once again loaded the bases for Newport. Andrew Duncan then recorded his third hit with a single to score Luke Orbon (St. John’s). That was followed by a sacrifice groundout from Matt Ossenfort to send Jake Burley home. Then, another two-RBI single from Jack Doyle scored Dixon Williams and Andrew Duncan to make it 17-2.

Newport went to its bullpen in the seventh and that’s when Martha’s Vineyard somehow found some life. Mitchell Dean (Louisville) replaced Teer and walked the first four batters of the frame to walk in a run. That was followed by a Griffin Mills double to score Michael Graziano and AJ Goytia. Dean was replaced by Drew DeLucia (Franklin Pierce) on the hill, who ended up pitching the rest of the way for the Gulls. A sacrifice groundout from JD Suarez brought Brayden Martin home and that was followed by a Mason Zambo single to bring in Griffin Mills. The scoring didn’t stop there for the Sharks who once again loaded the bases and a walk to Reese Robinett drove in Zambo. With the bases again loaded, Michael Graziano was hit by a pitch to score Andrew Yu and cap off a seven run seventh for Martha’s Vineyard. That cut Newport’s lead from 15 to 8 with the score 19-7 heading into the eighth.

After the two teams combined for 20 runs in the previous two innings, neither scored in the eighth. That wasn’t all for scoring though as Tyler Minnick sent a two-strike pitch over the left field fence for a two-run blast in the ninth, giving the Gulls a 19-9 lead. With two outs, the Sharks opted to put positional player Scott Seeker on the mound as their eighth pitcher of the game. All it took was one pitch for him to get out of the inning. Hoping for a miracle, Tryston McCladdie started the bottom of the ninth with a double and AJ Goytia was walked with two outs to put runners on the corners. However, Brayden Martin grounded out to finally end a bizarre game and give the Gulls a 19-9 win.

Andrew Duncan headlined Newport’s offense with an impressive 4-for-5 performance including five RBI, five runs and a walk. Jack Doyle also made a big impact with a 3-for-5 night, also tallying five RBI. Tyler Minnick’s only hit was the home run in the ninth but he finished the game with four runs batted in.

The Gulls have won two in a row, improving to 8-5. Newport currently holds a one game lead for first place in the Coastal Division and faces one of the teams right on its tail, North Shore, Friday night at Cardines Field. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35.