WESTFIELD – The Westfield Starfires came up short in their matchup against the Bristol Blues that ended in a 7–4 loss on Sunday night.
Bristol started the scoring off, putting a lone run on the board in the first inning with Buddy Dewaine driving Parker Upton home on a single.
Westfield exited the first inning down a run after the Blues were able to execute three consecutive outs in a strong defensive showing.
In the second inning, the Bristol Blues put a run across the plate because of a defensive error on the part of the Starfires. No additional runs were scored in the inning, leaving Westfield down by two runs going into their second at-bat.
Starfires outfielder Andrew Selima helped claim his team’s first run of the game after singling to get on base and advancing to second on an error. With Thomas Joyce in scoring position thanks to Selima’s single, Joyce crossed home plate when the error occurred.
Both teams went scoreless in the third and fourth innings with good defense displayed by the Starfires as well as the Blues.
The fifth brought one run apiece for the Blues and Starfires, with Westfield’s run coming after a single from first baseman Andrew Ciaccirelli with the bases loaded, allowing second baseman Jeremiah Vargas to score.
Four runs were added to Bristol’s total in the seventh inning after a scoreless sixth with three hits and two defensive errors.
Down 7–2 heading into the bottom of the seventh, the Starfires had to get the bats going to have a chance at walking away with a victory.
Westfield’s first batter of the inning, outfielder Danny Crossen led the Starfires one run closer to catching up with the Blues. Crossen sent the ball soaring to left field going well over the fence, resulting in a solo home run, his first as a Starfire.
Thomas Joyce kept the momentum going with a single that moved Devin Kellogg to third base after Kellogg got on base because of a walk. An error by Bristol’s catcher led to Kellogg scoring, putting another run on the board for the Starfires. That would be the final run of the game, as both the Blues and Starfires went without runs in the ninth inning.
With three more home games in a row this week, the Starfires hope to learn from Sunday’s game to bring winning energy back to Bullens Field and keep the season going in a positive direction. – Courtesy of Audrey Gamble/Westfield Starfires
