(MyKeeneNow) – The SwampBats rode a spectacular start from Nick Timpanelli and beat the North Adams SteepleCats 7-3 on Bikers and Baseball Night Saturday.

North Adams scratched out a run in the top of the first inning on a walk, a passed ball, a groundout, and an error. Penn State’s Joe Jaconski and Connecticut’s Sam Biller hit back-to-back doubles to the wall in front of an energetic crowd before an out was recorded. Biller stole third and jogged home on Alex Calarco’s (Maryland) sacrifice fly to the warning track to make it 2-1 Keene. Nick Timpanelli (Charleston Southern) impressively struck out the side in the second inning, consistently hitting 92 miles per hour on the radar gun. Keene stranded the bases loaded in the bottom half. Florida Atlantic’s Nick Romano lined a two-out single in the third, bringing up Bryce Molinaro (Penn State). Molinaro smashed a no-doubt home run 370 feet past the scoreboard in right-center, firing up the dugout and giving the SwampBats a 4-1 lead.

Austin Hawke (Wake Forest) and Jake Koonin (Princeton) turned a perfect 6-4-3 double play to help Timpanelli through the fourth. In the bottom half, Wiggins hit a scorching single to right field, then Hawke and Jaconski walked to load the bases. Koonin notched his 29th RBI of the season with a single, and Hawke scored on a wild pitch to make it 6-1. Timpanelli struck out three more in the fifth and finished with eight strikeouts, no earned runs, and only two hits allowed through five brilliant innings. The SwampBats loaded the bases in the bottom of the fifth but were unable to tack on. North Adams got a solo home run in the sixth, but Nick Guidas (Kent State) struck out two and allowed no other baserunners in the inning. In the bottom of the seventh, season debutant David Mendez (Vanderbilt) drew a leadoff walk, moved to second on a groundout by Wiggins, and took third on a great dirt ball read. After a Hawke walk, Jaconski hit a chopper to first. The first baseman tried to turn a 3-6-3 double play, but the SwampBats’ all-star just beat it out for the RBI, falling after crossing first. Jackson Gaspard (Georgia Tech) pitched a one-two-three seventh, exiting with two on and one out in the eighth. Kent State’s Jake Bean got out of the jam with two strikeouts, dominating with a fastball that reached 95 miles per hour. The SteepleCats scored on a couple of hits in the ninth, but Wiggins caught the game-ending flyout.

The SwampBats are 21-13 before the All-Star Game Sunday. Keene is off on Monday, and they visit Martha’s Vineyard for a doubleheader on Tuesday with the first game at 4:30. The next home game is McClure’s Broken Bat Night on Friday. After the game, there will be a spectacular postgame fireworks show from Atlas Fireworks.