By Bob Rotruck

Box Score

The Amsterdam Mohawks pushed their latest win streak to nine straight and improved to an impressive overall record of 20-3 following a 7-2 victory Their win at the Albany Dutchmen on Monday night at Bob Bellizzi Field in Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League action was also the team's 19th win in their last 20 games with their current  nine-game win streak coming immediately after their previous 10-game streak.

Early in the evening, the latest Perfect Game Summer Collegiate Top 30 poll was released and the Mohawks had moved all the way up to #6 in the nation from their previous week's spot of 11. It is the highest ranking ever for a Mohawks team and also the highest rating for a team from the PGCBL.

A 4-for-4 game with two doubles from Zak Colby (Faulkner, Ala.) led the 15-hit attack for Amsterdam. Colby improved his batting average 44 points in just one game from .300 to .344. His second double came in the eighth inning and just missed going over the centerfield wall for what would have been hit first home-run of the year. He ended the night with a sacrifice fly RBI in the ninth inning to drive in the team's final run.

Rocky McCord (Auburn) threw six innings of four-hit ball allowing just two early unearned runs to get the win. McCord improved to 3-0 with the win as he lowered his ERA to 1.27.

The Dutchmen got decent pitching from Austin Chase (Univ. Albany) but a four-run Amsterdam rally in the fourth ended up being his downfall.

Albany fell to 10-12 with the loss. They have had a tough time against Amsterdam this year going 0-6 against their area rivals. But the Dutchmen have gone 10-6 against the rest of the league to stay in the PGCBL playoff race in fifth place. The top four teams will qualify for the postseason.

After the top two batters for Amsterdam were named as co-Players of the Week, Ed Charlton (NJIT) and Evan Stephens (Wake Forest), it would be the players at the bottom of the lineup to provide most of the offense for the Mohawks.

The six through nine batters went a combined 10-for-17 led by Zak Colby's 4-for-4 game with two doubles and two RBI's.

D.J. Hoagboon (Univ. Albany) batting in the eight spot had a couple hits off his college teammate Austin Chase to keep his hot-streak going. Hoagboon has multiple hits in three straight games after going 2-for-4. He is 9-for-13 in the current stretch.

Albany took the early lead taking advantage of a tough backhand error charged against Amsterdam shortstop Chase Green (SIU-Edwardsville). Ryan Gasporra drove in a couple with a single to left and the Dutch were up 2-0.

Amsterdam would rally for four in the fourth with Evan Stephens getting the frame going with a single up the middle. He advanced to second on an errant pickoff throw and then stole third and scored on the same play as the wild pitch got away.

A two-out double by Jeff Boehm (Kentucky) would get the rest of the rally started and would be the first of five straight hits. Colby singled him around to tie the score at 2-2. Then Josh Nethaway (Univ. Albany) courageously pushed a bunt single to the third-base side of the mound with two outs setting up back-to-back RBI singles by Hoagboon and Demarcus Henderson (Mississippi State).

Amsterdam came away from the fourth inning with a 4-2 lead but it almost went the other way for the Mohawks. In the bottom of the fourth, a couple of base-hits from Sam Few and Ryan Gasporra with a single and a double. Then a hit batter had the Dutchmen threatening with runners at every base and nobody out.

McCord got out of it by inducing a soft liner to Henderson at second that he was able to turn into a double-play by throwing out the runner at second. Nick Chapman (UNC-Greensboro) flied out to center and Amsterdam somehow escaped the bases-loaded no out threat in the fourth without allowing a Dutchmen score.

The Mohawks would score one in the sixth on Hoagboon's second RBI on the night driving in Nethaway who had singled and stolen second. It appeared Hoagboon had made it 6-2 on a Demarcus Henderson single to right but Henderson was thrown out trying to stretch it to a double and the umpiring decided that Hoagboon had not touched the plate yet when the tag was applied on Henderson.

They added two runs in the ninth with Chase Green singling in Charlton who had also singled. And Colby lifting a deep fly to center for a sacrifice to drive in the seventh and last run of the night.

Relief pitchers Dan Zlotnick (Marist), Kevin Archbold (Univ. Albany) and Chase Williamson (Auburn) threw hitless ball in the 7th, 8th and 9th innings to finish off the win.

The Mohawks open a three-game homestand with a Tuesday night game against the Cooperstown Hawkeyes on the third annual Third of July Fireworks Night presented by the Amsterdam Rotary. The Mohawks have the day off on the 4th of July but Amsterdam will be back at home on Thursday and Friday.

Tuesday's game will mark the midway point of the season for the Mohawks, their 24th game out of 48 on the regular season as they seek their 21st win.

Albany is on the road Tuesday night at Mohawk Valley. Their next home game is Friday at the Christian Plumeri Sports Complex against Cooperstown.

More News Articles