Cortland Standard .net

SHERRILL — For the third consecutive day, the Cortland Crush continued their productive pattern of being one run better than the Sherrill Silversmiths in the New York Collegiate Baseball League.
The surging Crush concluded a successful weekend with a 5-4 victory at Sherrill on Sunday afternoon, as Zephan Kash’s three-run homer in the top of the sixth inning at Noyes Park proved to be the game-winner while providing the visitors with a 5-0 lead to protect.
The second place Crush (21-15) had nipped the last place Silversmiths (7-27) on Saturday afternoon at Greg’s Field by a narrow 3-2 margin, as pitchers Shawn Brody and ninth inning reliever TJ Peterson combined on a five-hitter while Kash connected on a decisive two-run homer. That close call came after battling back from a 7-0 deficit to overtake the Silversmiths 8-7 at Greg’s Field this past Friday evening.
Cortland has won all eight outings against Sherrill this season, with six of those being one-run success stories.
“It’s weird we keep getting these one-run wins,” said Kash, the current Mansfield University performer out of Homer. “It really shows that the team can grind it out and stick together until the end. Sherrill is a good team. They can hang around with anyone. They are certainly better than their record. You can’t take them lightly.”
Heading to Damaschke Field in Oneonta for a 5 p.m. doubleheader with the Outlaws today, the Crush are only two games behind the Syracuse Salt Cats (23-13) in the Eastern Division standings with 10 games left in the regular season.
The NYCBL All-Star Game will be played this week, a 7:05 p.m. start in Oneonta on Thursday night. Kash, outfielder Julian Gallup and the pitching trio of Peterson, Nate Verst and Yale Brian Hughes will represent the Crush on the Eastern Division squad. Kash will also take part in that evening’s Home Run Derby.
Crush 5, Silversmiths 4: On Sunday, Crush starter Shae Edmonds improved to 2-2 after throwing six shutout innings. The Texan who attends Howard Payne University allowed seven hits, struck out six and did not issue a walk while keeping the Silversmiths off the scoreboard.
After a couple of rough previous outings, Edmonds turned to a new pitch — a knuckle-curve — to help turn things around.
“I came into this game thinking about those two bad days and came with a new curveball today,” he said. “I started working on a knuckle-curve about a week ago. I kept it a secret until today. My coach (Crush pitching coach Daniel Payne) didn’t even know about it. I started throwing it and it was working for me, so I may stick with it.”
Cortland took a 1-0 lead after Sean Getman was hit by a pitch one-out into the bottom of the second inning. The SUNY Cortland junior came around to score on Gallup’s two-out RBI single, that delivered after a Wes Burghardt single and Luke Gilbert bunt went for a base hit to load the bases.
This was still a 1-0 game until the sixth, when Burghardt doubled, was bunted to third by Gilbert and scored on successful suicide squeeze bunt put down by shortstop Nick Panissidi. After Gallup singled and Neil McCormack walked, Kash hit his three-run homer — his sixth of the season — over the short right field fence that is only 246 feet from home plate.
“That was probably my cheapest home run, easily my cheapest,” said Kash, who was 3-for-4 after going 2-for-2 the previous day. “It wouldn’t have been a home run anywhere else.”
Sherrill kept things interesting in the late innings, starting with Zach Taylor singling home a run in the seventh. Three more runs arrived in the eighth when Jake Pendred delivered an RBI base hit before Kevin Jordan smacked a two-run homer to pull the Silversmiths within a run.
Reliever Matt Yonta took over on the mound for the Crush after Jordan’s blow and retired all six batters he faced to keep Sherrill a run shy once again.
“It’s just something that happens,” said Gallup of Cortland’s handling of Sherrill. “We did a good job stopping them when it got to 5-4. Yonta did a great job at the end. Shae pitched an awesome game in the beginning.”
Cortland 3, Sherrill 2: The Crush scored first in the bottom of the second when Matt Alberino singled and scored after a pair of Silversmiths errors. The visitors tied things in the top of the third when Taylor singled, stole second and scored on a Mitch Sloan base hit.
Kash then put the Crush ahead to stay in the bottom of the third. After Burghardt came up with a one-out single, Kash homered to right-center for a 3-1 lead.
That was it for the Crush offense, Cortland retired in order in four of the final five innings and finishing with just five hits.
Sherrill got one run back in the sixth after Taylor reached on an error. He stole second again and raced home on a Michael-Patrick Buckley’s base hit to left.
Crush starter Brody (1-1) struck out eight batters and allowed just five hits, with no walks. Peterson came in for the ninth inning and retired the side in order, two ground-outs sandwiched around a fly ball to left. It was Peterson’s first save of the season, as the lefty is usually used as a starter.