Camacho Fires No-Hitter

Southampton junior pitcher Gabe Camacho struck out six and walked two in a 15-0 no-hitter victory over Southold May 9.

The Mariners’ third straight win was a complete game and team effort. The defense backed up their pitcher when he needed it, and the offense, led by Camacho’s battery mate Thomas Gabriele’s 6-for-6 showing with three home runs and seven RBI, and Matt Chilicki’s 4-for-6 day with three doubles and five RBI, was firing on all cylinders.

“It was really exhilarating and it happened so fast that at first I didn’t really comprehend what happened,” Camacho said. “It’s really awesome to see your whole team be so excited.”

Camacho said it was important for him to be mentally prepared, adding he’d been working on his curveball and knuckle curveball and had good command of his pitches.

“I think a big difference in this game versus some of our other games is that my team made plays behind me,” Camacho said. “In my previous starts, errors had been the difference between us winning and losing, so I’m glad that they could back me up in the field. I made sure to keep changing the pace of the game between pitches, and keeping the hitters off balance by using all of my pitches.”

He said working with his catcher for the last few years didn’t hurt either.

“It’s really important to have a catcher that is used to catching your pitches,” Camacho said. “Luckily, I’ve been playing with both catchers on the team since little league. The extra runs didn’t hurt either, definitely eased the burden. When your team is hitting the ball and making plays in the field it lifts a lot of pressure off your shoulders. I didn’t have to worry about the batters hitting the ball since we did have a big lead.”

The win lifts Southampton (12-5 overall, 10-5 in League VII) over Baby-lon for third in the standings behind Mattituck (12-5, 11-4) and unbeaten Center Moriches (15-0, 15-0) whom the Mariners wrap up the season with.

Hampton Bays Secures Playoff Spot

Emily Peyton pushed Hampton Bays across the finish line. The junior pitched two complete games and her team did what it needed to by winning the last two games of the season to secure a playoff spot.

In an 8-4 win over Southampton May 8, Peyton struck out five and walked six over seven innings. Tara Brochu went 4-for-4 with two RBI, two runs, a double, and a triple, and Pam Grajales was 3-for-4 with a run scored.

Peyton left it all out on the diamond once more when she struck out another five batters and walked five in a postseason-clinching 16-0 shutout of Southold/Greenport May 9. And so did her teammates in the statement win.

Brochu went 2-for-3 with three runs, two RBI, and a walk to lead Hampton Bays (7-9 overall, 7-7 in League VI). Elle Dunkirk finished 2-for-3 with two RBI, a run scored, and a walk.

desiree@indyeastend.com