Tri-County Baseball · Western Massachusetts · Est. 1929
Saints
Baseball Club
Saints Gut Out a Thriller at Westfield State, 5–4
Jodoin's bases-clearing single in the sixth stands up as Yasu battles through seven gritty innings for the complete-game win
There were lead changes, blown advantages, clutch knocks, and a whole lot of baserunners Wednesday evening at Westfield State University. When the dust settled, it was St. Joseph's Saints standing on the right side of a 5–4 decision over BankESB — a game that had absolutely everything a summer-night baseball crowd could ask for.
St. Joe's grabbed the early edge when Mark Jodoin grounded out to score a run in the opening frame, but BankESB wouldn't allow the Saints to breathe easy for long. The home club answered in the second on a James Rocco groundout, then knotted it again at two in the third when Nick Valentino singled down the left-field line after Greg Vouros had nudged St. Joe's back in front on a walk. ESB even grabbed the lead outright in the fourth when they singled to score a run and give the home side a 3–2 advantage, the kind of momentum swing that can deflate a road club in the middle innings.
But this St. Joe's lineup wasn't going quietly. Jodoin — who had already driven home the first run — came back to the plate in the top of the sixth and delivered the decisive blow: a single that scored two runs, put the Saints back in front 4–3, and effectively flipped the script on BankESB's evening. A fifth run followed, and suddenly the Saints had something worth defending.
Trey Yasu made sure they held it. The hurler worked all seven innings for the complete-game victory, navigating around six hits and four runs — three earned — while punching out seven and walking two. It was not an immaculate outing; ESB put men on base and tested him repeatedly. But Yasu was at his best when the game was tightest, and that's the only kind of performance that matters in a one-run game.
The story on the ESB side was a pitching staff that couldn't quite hold it together. Grayson Loos opened and issued eight walks in three innings — a remarkable display of wildness that gave St. Joe's 10 free passes on the night as a team. Jake Hayes alone drew three walks for the visitors. Jack Stathatos relieved and struck out five over four innings but took the loss, surrendering three runs on three hits before the Saints broke things open. Valentino and Stathatos each went 2-for-the-night for ESB, and the home side matched St. Joe's with four stolen bases — Emmett Garfield swiping two of them. Nick Burns handled 10 fielding chances without an error, the busiest glove on the diamond.
St. Joe's posted five hits from five different players — Vouros, Jodoin, Jack Feltovic, Brandon Magni, and Colby Harrington each collecting one — with Jodoin's three RBI carrying the offensive weight. The Saints welcome BankESB back on Friday, a rematch that should be circled on every calendar in Western Massachusetts.
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