6-Run Inning Propels Big Train Over Grays 6-4

ROCKVILLE, MD - JULY 16: during the game against the DC Grays at Shirley Povich Field on Thursday, July 16, 2026 in Rockville, Maryland. (Photo by Matthew Lewyn/Bethesda Community Base Ball Club)

BETHESDA, Md — The days are flying by for the Bethesda Big Train (24-10), as with only five days left in the regular season, the team dsits atop the standings in the Cal Ripken Sr. Collegiate Baseball League, 1.5 games ahead of the second-place Olney Cropdusters. 

On a hot Thursday evening, the Big Train defended Shirley Povich Field against the DC Grays (12-22) in a makeup game from June 27. 

Bethesda came into Thursday evening off the back of a thrilling 18-8 win over the Gaithersburg Giants on Wednesday evening that saw outfielders Zachary Malvasio (University of Central Florida) and WillHaacke (James Madison University), and infielder Casey Carpenter (UNC Wilmington) tally two RBIs each.

Both teams relied on their pitchers during Thursday evening’s matchup — for pitching as well as batting. Primary pitcher Austin Monahan (State College of Florida) started off as the designated hitter, lining out in his first at-bat. The Sterling, Virginia native then came out of the bullpen to pitch in the bottom of the fourth inning.

Monahan ended Thursday evening’s game with 63 pitches and 41 strikes through four innings, with one hit, two runs and five strikeouts. He also went out and got one hit and walked once in three at-bats.

“I haven’t done that since high school,” Monahan said. “Tiring, for sure, but I got it done. If Sal [Colangelo] lets me, I’ll do it again.”

The starting pitcher for the Big Train, right-hander Jackson Ketchum (University of Alabama), started off slow, hitting the first pitcher he faced and allowing two hits to give the Grays an early 2-0. But, he bounced back quickly, striking two batters out and forcing a fly out to end the inning.

The West Point, Mississippi native got hot, going three-up, three-down in the top of the second and top of the fourth, while only giving up two hits and no runs in the top of the third. When Monahan took the mound in the top of the fifth inning, Ketchum had tallied 51 pitches for 26 strikes through five innings, including four strikeouts.

Neither offense could get going through the first half of the contest, but the Big Train bats came alive in the bottom of the fifth inning. 

Carpenter led off with a walk, and got into scoring position thanks to a single from infielder Parker Corbin (Akron University). Haacke loaded the bases, getting on base with a walk on a full count.

Catcher Jack Gagen was the first to drive runs in, driving a 2-RBI single into left field, scoring Carpenter and Corbin and tying the game at two-all.

Monahan came up next, and another Grays’ error drove a run in to give Bethesda the lead, which it would continue to take advantage of. 

Infielders Kieran Coleman (Clarion University) and Logan Ponnett (George Mason University), and Malvasio all got on base on consecutive at-bats, driving in three more runs and giving the Big Train a game-defining 6-2 lead.

The Grays would claw back with two runs in the top of the seventh inning, but Monahan and reliever Kyzer Smith (Florida Atlantic University) would kill any chance of a comeback by going six-up, six-down in the final two innings, giving the Big Train a crucial 6-4 win heading into the final stretch of the season.

Two of the regular season’s most important matchups remain for Bethesda – an away doubleheader against the Cropdusters. The first game will complete the final three innings from the matchup on June 6, while the second game will be a nine-inning contest. Due to hazardous air quality conditions, both games, which were scheduled for July 17, have been postponed to a later date.

“One game, one pitch at a time,” Colangelo said. “We’ll do what we gotta do in the first game, and then we’ll take care of stuff.”