Amsterdam falls in 2021 PGCBL Championship Series

Michael Kelly, The Daily Gazette, Schenectady, N.Y.
·2 min read

Aug. 4—AMSTERDAM — Despite a fantastic regular season, the Amsterdam Mohawks were unable to add another league championship to their storied history this summer.

Needing a win Tuesday to force a deciding Game 3 later that night, the Mohawks fell 13-6 to the Saugerties Stallions at Shuttleworth Park. The victory clinched the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League championship for the Stallions, which had defeated the Mohawks 2-1 Monday in walk-off fashion.

The championship-series sweep came after Amsterdam, which finished a PGCBL-best 31-9 during the regular season, had topped the Auburn Doubledays 7-1 in the semifinal round.

While Monday's Game 1 of the PGCBL Championship Series featured plenty of drama, Tuesday's Game 2 saw Saugerties — which finished in second place behind the Mohawks in the East Division — seize control early in the contest. The Mohawks led 2-0 after one inning, but the Stallions answered with a five-run second inning that included a grand slam off the bat of Josh Stevenson. Amsterdam scored in each of the game's first three innings, and again in the seventh, but the Mohawks always trailed after Saugerties plated five runs in the second.

Andrew Wilhite also hit a home run for the Stallions, which scored at least a run in six of their nine offensive frames. Stevenson lead Saugerties with four RBIs and two runs scored, while Wilhite had three RBIs and Nick Iverson had two.

Securing the pitching victory for the Stallions was Richie Cimpric. In a relief effort, Cimpric struck out four batters in 3 1-3 scoreless innings.

For Amsterdam, Stone Miyao was the only player with multiple RBIs. Miyao had two RBIs and two hits, while Brett Coker also had two hits. On the mound, Cooper Barnum was the first of six Amsterdam pitchers to appear, and he took the loss after allowing five earned runs in two innings.

Amsterdam had won the last contested championship in PGCBL play in 2019, as the league didn't play in 2020 because of concerns related to the novel coronavirus pandemic. That 2019 championship was the Mohawks' fifth PGCBL championship, and 10th overall title in franchise history.