KEENE, N.H. – (MyKeeneNow) The SwampBats defeated the Mystic Schooners 4-3 on Tuesday in a game that saw no runs scored after the third inning. Keene hosted Pride Night at Alumni Field and there was a pride parade prior to the game.

In the bottom of the first, Cincinnati’s Josh Kross slapped a double down the left field line, scoring Ripken Reese (Kent State). Two batters later, Delaware’s Aaron Graeber continued the electrifying start with a screaming line-drive single to right field that exited his bat at an astounding 108 miles-per-hour. The Schooners loaded the bases in the second on two walks and a single. The next batter hit a popup that was dropped, but second baseman Reese made a heads up play, firing the ball from center field to third base to record a massive out. Mystic scored again on a slow ground ball to tie the game at two. In the bottom half, Andrew Wiggins (Indiana) singled off the pitcher’s glove to set up J.D. Jones (Rutgers) with a runner on. Jones belted a towering flyball to the left field corner which crept over the fence for a two-run home run, his first of the summer. In the top of the third, the Schooners hit a solo home run to make it 4-3 and chase SwampBats Starter Josh Gunther (Wake Forest) from the game. Gunther struck out four over two and one-third innings. The game got even more chaotic when the visitors made two errors in the bottom half, but Keene could not punish them.

After three innings, the game looked like it would turn into a four-hour slugfest, but it took an unexpected U-turn instead. Jaden Varner (Kent State) continued his excellent season with two scoreless innings, striking out two. Joe Carrea (UConn) struck out two batters in a row with a runner on third base in the fifth inning and worked around two more walks in the sixth. Meanwhile, Mystic held the SwampBats offense despite allowing two runners on in the fourth and sixth. Jake Bean (Kent State) took over for Carrea in the seventh and stranded a runner on second, before exiting with one out and one on in the eighth. As the drama built in the game’s final stages, closer Isaac Williams (Central Florida) entered the game, having converted all four of his save chances this season. After hitting the first batter he faced, he induced a 6-4 fielder’s choice on a nice play by shortstop Nick Romano (Florida Atlantic), and then got a swinging strike three to strand runners at second and third. Williams worked around a single in the ninth, striking out the final batter on his signature 97-mile-an-hour fastball.

Keene (10-5) has the second-best record in the league and hosts the Danbury Westerners on Wednesday evening.