Blue Sox erupt in 14-6 road win over Nighthawks
By Kate Endres
WHITE RIVER JUNCTION, Vt- One night after walking off the Ocean State Waves, the Valley Blue Sox brought the momentum to Vermont. Valley (2-0-1) erupted for a season-high 14 runs on 14 hits Sunday evening as the Blue Sox defeated the Upper Valley Nighthawks (1-2) 14-6 at Maxfield Sports Complex.
"Good to see," Valley head coach John Raiola said. "The impressive thing is the 14 runs, especially when the offense has been a little bit tough to come by. We've been talking the whole time that it'll come if you keep working and getting your timing."
The win came in the Blue Sox’s first road game of the season, with Valley showing little sign of discomfort despite the change in scenery.
"First road game, obviously a different type of pregame," Raiola said. "Kind of a good answer from everybody to still be ready to play."
The two, three and four-hole hitters all led the way. Anthony Grabau, Trevor Harmon and Chris Carson accounted for more than half of the Blue Sox’s offensive production. Grabau turned in the biggest performance of the three, going 4-for-6 with three runs scored, two RBIs and the team's first home run of the season. Harmon added two hits and three runs scored, while Carson finished with two hits and three RBIs for Valley.
"I'm feeling good," Grabau said. "I was seeing the ball well, just getting back early, seeing the ball up. That was the approach."
The Lynnfield native has been one of the Blue Sox's most consistent hitters through the opening week of the season. Grabau entered the summer after a standout spring at Fordham, where he started all 55 games for the Rams, hit .303 and led the team with 53 runs scored. His four-hit performance Sunday continued that production at the top of the Valley lineup.
But Grabau said there is still adjustments being made as players settle into summer ball.
"[I'm] getting used to the wood bats, getting used to live pitching after some time off," Grabau said. "It's definitely getting back into the swing of things, which feels good."
The Blue Sox established control early, scoring four runs in the first inning before Grabau's solo homer stretched the lead to 5-0 in the second. But Upper Valley responded in the bottom of the third, receiving RBI hits from Cameron Boardman and James Love to cut the deficit to 5-3 and briefly swing momentum back toward the home team.
While the Nighthawks started to dig out of the five-run hole, Valley responded with a dominant fourth-inning stretch.
After Chris Cancel reached on an error, Grabau and Harmon recorded back-to-back singles before Carson lined a two-run triple into the right-center-field gap. The three runs in the inning pushed the Blue Sox's advantage back to five runs and halted Upper Valley's momentum and attempted comeback.
The Nighthawks added a fifth-inning run to pull within 8-4, but Valley continued to apply pressure throughout the night. The Blue Sox drew nine walks and placed runners on base in eight of nine innings, adding two runs in the seventh and four more in the ninth to pull away with the win.
Valley's bullpen also helped preserve the lead after Upper Valley's third-inning rally. Owen Basso, Kaden Kimble and Dom Ruggiero combined to strike out nine batters across the final six innings, limiting the Nighthawks to three hits over that stretch.
"[It was] a complete game for us, obviously some things for us to work on ... [but we] continue to get better as we go [and] it's good to learn those things in wins. And that's what we did tonight," Raiola said.
The Blue Sox return to Mackenzie Stadium on Monday for their Millers Monday promotion against the Danbury Westerners. First pitch is slated for 6:35 p.m., and the game can be streamed on NECBL+.