It’s been a rough start to the season, but on April 22, the Bonackers finally erased the zero from their record, notching their first victory, a 1-0 extra-inning walk-off win against Eastport-South Manor. Trevor Meehan, a senior pitcher who had been feeling the pressure to lead the team back to the playoffs after an extraordinary run last year, pitched shutout baseball through six and a third innings before batting in the winning run in the eighth.
“Mason [Miles] doubled on a fly ball to right-center. I was surprised they pitched to him because they intentionally walked him twice that game,” Meehan said. “Livs Kuplins bunted him over and beat it out. So now we had guys at first and third and Victoreddy [Aguero] was at bat, and they walked him. So we had bases loaded and I was up to bat, and the pitcher pitch-limited out, so he was done.”
“They brought in their first baseman to pitch and he was throwing hard. First pitch was a ball. Second pitch was a ball. It was 2-0. Third pitch, I took that pitch. Then he threw me another ball. So it was 3-1. I took a big swing, swung and missed, 3-2. He left a fastball there and I hit it back up the middle. It tipped off his glove, Mason came home, and we scored. All I remember was hitting first base, looking around, and all of a sudden I see 22 guys storming me at first base. It was a great feeling.”
The Bonackers’ first win of the season was all the more special because it happened against Eastport-South Manor. The two teams’ dislike for each other dates back to last season, when the Sharks swept the Bonackers in the regular season, but East Hampton got the last laugh, upsetting Eastport-South Manor in the playoffs to advance to the Suffolk County championship. Last week’s win was yet another upset, Bonac’s first win and the Sharks’ first loss.
“It was chippy, from the start to the end. The last two years, I think they’re 36-2, a top-five team in the state, and we knew that,” Meehan said. “It meant the world for all of us. That’s like our World Series. To play them and beat them — a big-time underdog story. I know they definitely weren’t expecting that. They’re not an easy team to beat, so it’s fun to compete against them.”
The Bonackers have a rough road ahead if they want to return to the playoffs. They essentially need to win every game to get there. But Meehan thinks they can do it.
“Starting out 0-7 for any team is never a great start, but we’re looking to turn it around now. It was really fun. One through nine really played well. We limited errors and pitched well. Everybody swung the bat. We played like a team, so it was great to get that big first win. I think we’re going to keep it rolling from here.”
