PITTSFIELD, MA — Holding a one run lead in the top of the seventh inning, the Vermont Lake Monsters scored eight runs on nine base hits in the frame, then added another run in the eighth for an 11-1 Futures League eight-inning mercy-rule victory over the Pittsfield Suns Wednesday night at Wachonah Park.

The seventh started with a single, stolen base and Ryan Marra (Brown) RBI single before a flyball for the first out of inning. The Lake Monsters then ran off three straight hits, a run-scoring fielding error and then three more consecutive hits including two-run singles from Tyler Favretto (Crowder) and Tommy Hawke (Wake Forest).

Vermont added another run in the eighth on a Cam Conley (Pepperdine) leadoff double and one-out George Cooper (Harvard) sacrifice fly before Silas Reed (Tufts) closed out game with a scoreless bottom of the eighth. With the victory, the Lake Monsters (24-6) hold an eight-game lead over New Britain (16-14) for 1st-place in the FCBL standings.

Starter Sean Matson (Harvard) allowed just two hits, back-to-back one-out singles in the second, over five scoreless innings with two walks and six strikeouts. Over 27 innings in six starts this summer, Matson has just three walks, 46 strikeouts and a 2.00 ERA.

Monster Performances
* Sean Matson 5 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 6 SO
* Cam Conley 3-for-5, 2 R, 2B, 2 RBI
* Jackson Kline 3-for-5, BB, 1 R

Monster Highlights
* Vermont season-high 18 hits, including Gio Cueto (Wake Forest) 3-for-5 with 2 runs scored in 3rd game of season
* Favretto, Marra and Hawke each had 2 hits as 6 different Lake Monsters finished with multi-hit games
* Only Pittsfield run was unearned, scoring on a throwing error as Suns double stole 2nd and 3rd in 6th inning
* With Matson’s 5 scoreless innings, Vermont starting pitchers have 0.64 ERA last 8 games (42 IP, 13 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 7 BB, 49 SO)

Beyond The Boxscore
* Vermont has still won 23 of last 26 games and 24-6 record is franchise-best after 30 games (2021 Lake Monsters were season-low 12-18 after 30 games)
* Lake Monsters score 10+ runs for 8th time (all in last 13 games) and win 5th mercy-rule game this season
* Vermont has now scored 5 or more runs in 11 of last 13 games, 16 of 19 and 23 of 30 overall
* Since July 1st of 2021, the Lake Monsters have a 54-12 regular-season record (30-6 to end 2021, 24-6 in 2022)

Next Game: Thursday vs. Nashua 6:35pm
Military Appreciation Night!