Newport Snaps Skid in 5-1 Win Over North Adams

After a 6-4 loss to the North Shore Navigators on Monday night, any ounce of momentum the Newport Gulls may have had came to a screeching halt. After four straight defeats, the squad's longest losing streak since 2022, tonight offered a new challenge—a long trip out to western Massachusetts to face a third consecutive North Division opponent, the North Adams SteepleCats. At risk of dropping five straight, the Gulls turned things around and responded with a commanding 5-1 win.

Newport grabbed a lead from the start, courtesy of catcher Peter Mershon (Mississippi St.) and outfielder Cole Johnson (Austin Peay) both with an RBI to put the Gulls up 2-0. 

The pitching for Newport was phenomenal, beginning with Burkley Bounds (Kentucky). Making his second start of the NECBL season. Bounds went four innings surrendering just one run off two hits while raking up five strikeouts. 

The Newport offense struck again in the fifth and sixth both via strong baserunning. First Cade Brown (Georgia Tech) crossed the plate on a ball in the dirt and an inning later Cole Johnson scored on a ball that reached the backstop. Newport made it three innings straight of scoring from an RBI single from Peter Mershon in the 7th, boosting the lead to four. 

Kyle Zagar (Oklahoma St.) and Will Allen (South Florida) cleaned up out of the bullpen for Newport. The two worked a combined five innings of scoreless baseball. The duo put down six batters via the strikeout while walking only one. 

After securing the 5-1 victory Newport aims to keep rolling tomorrow against the Mystic Schooners. Standing at 4-6-1 theGulls continue the climb back to .500. First pitch is set for 6:35 with streaming also available on ESPN+.