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SteepleCats Snap Losing Streak With Road Win Over Mystic

By John WoodNorth Adams SteepleCats
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NORTH ADAMS, Mass. —Even though Bryce Harper was crowned the MLB Home Run Derby Champion last Monday, the North Adams SteepleCats and Mystic Schooners certainly made their case for the title on Saturday night.

After a long drive to the coast of Connecticut, the SteepleCats took on the Mystic Schooners in a North vs. South matchup at Robert E. Fitch Senior High School on Saturday night. Behind great nights at the plate by the SteepleCats offense and masterful pitching, the SteepleCats were able to snap a five-game losing streak, defeating the Mystic Schooners 8-4 in a game that had four solo home runs by the two teams combined.

The SteepleCats offense came out early against the Schooners courtesy of infielder Joe Porricelli. Following singles by his teammates Dillon Mendel and Jackson Coutts, Porricelli sent a ball up the middle off Mystic starting pitcher Kumar Nambiar for a fielder’s choice hit, bringing in Mendel. Then after outfielder James Ciliento sent Porricelli to third with his own single, a throw by the catcher to try and catch Porricelli sleeping sailed other the third baseman, allowing the Merrimack College junior to cross the plate, making it 2-0 North Adams after the top of the 1st.

As SteepleCats starter Grant Stone held Mystic at bay in the 1st, the Schooners found their way on the scoreboard in the 2nd. In a 2-2 count, outfielder Chris Winkel sent a solo home run over the outfield wall, cutting the SteepleCats lead to just one.

After Nambiar held North Adams scoreless in the 2nd, the North Adams offense found their way back on the base path in the next four innings.

Starting in the third, center fielder Jeffery Brown got the SteepleCats offense back on track by driving in Jackson Coutts on an RBI groundout. Then after Greg Cavaliere reached on a single in the 4th, shortstop Dillon Mendel sent Cavaliere home after he singled. The 5th inning was all outfielder James Ciliento for North Adams, as the Bryant University sophomore sent a deep solo shot over the wall for his first home run of the season. The scoring stretch was then capped by Jackson Coutts continuing his big night at the plate in the 6th with his second double of the contest to score another run, this time off relief pitcher Nicholas Rand.

But the stretch wasn’t all North Adams on the scoreboard. After dominant pitching from Grant Stone in the 3rd and 4th innings, Mic Wilson got a hold of one for the second solo home run of the game for the Schooners.

Following the top of 6th, Grant Stone’s night on the mound concluded for the SteepleCats, ending with a stat line of 5.0 innings with three hits and two earned runs while striking out six. Danny Taggart of Adelphi University then came on to pitch for North Adams in his 9th appearance in the NECBL.

As Taggart held the home offense empty in the 6th, the Schooners quickly jumped on him in the 7th. After second baseman Sean Sullivan doubled to the wall, third baseman Sebastiano Santorelli drove him on a double of his own. Two passed balls later Sebastiano scored, making the game interesting as they cut the SteepleCats lead to just two.

Yet as they were not able to do in recent games, the SteepleCats then provided some insurance runs to pad their lead back up to four. This came in both the 8th and 9th innings, as a Joe Porricelli RBI single and big Cris Ruiz solo home run provided some distance from the Schooners’ run total.

However after Taggart’s long inning, the right-hander held Mystic silent the rest of the game, throwing two more innings in which he surrendered just one hit and bumped up his strikeout total to five on the game, eventually sealing the win for North Adams with one in the 9th.

Saturday night’s win for the SteepleCats did not come without its key contributors. The North Adams bats came up big at the plate, but especially from Dillon Mendel and Jackson Coutts. The pair both went 3-for-4 at the dish as it seems Coutts has broken out of his recent slump, bringing his already impressive batting average back up to .398. The win would also not have been possible without Grant Stone and Danny Taggart’s performances on the mound, as the SteepleCats needed the pair to go deep into the game with the lack of depth the North Adams bullpen has. Allowing just eight hits throughout the contest, the pair fanned a combined eleven batters on the way to the team’s thirteenth win.

The SteepleCats return home on Sunday for a 4:30 contest against the Upper Valley Nighthawks. Sunday is also Pedro Sierra Day at Joe Wolfe Field, as the former Negro League and MLB player will throw out the game’s first pitch. Tickets for Sunday’s game can be purchased online at www.steeplecats.org and at the ticket booth one hour prior to the game’s start.

 

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Macksey Updates on Eagle Street Demo and Myriad City Projects

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff

The back of Moderne Studio in late January. The mayor said the city had begun planning for its removal if the owner could not address the problems. 
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Moderne Studio building is coming down brick by brick on Eagle Street on the city's dime. 
 
Concerns over the failing structure's proximity to its neighbor — just a few feet — means the demolition underway is taking far longer than usual. It's also been delayed somewhat because of recent high winds and weather. 
 
The city had been making plans for the demolition a month ago because of the deterioration of the building, Mayor Jennifer Macksey told the City Council on Tuesday. The project was accelerated after the back of the 150-year-old structure collapsed on March 5
 
Initial estimates for demolition had been $190,000 to $210,000 and included asbestos removal. Those concerns have since been set aside after testing and the mayor believes that the demolition will be lower because it is not a hazardous site.
 
"We also had a lot of contractors who came to look at it for us to not want to touch it because of the proximity to the next building," she said. "Unfortunately time ran out on that property and we did have the building failure. 
 
"And it's an unfortunate situation. I think most of us who have lived here our whole lives and had our pictures taken there and remember being in the window so, you know, we were really hoping the building could be safe."
 
Macksey said the city had tried working with the owner, who could not find a contractor to demolish the building, "so we found one for him."
 
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