SOUTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. — The North Shore Navigators played in another instant classic against their Coastal Division foe Ocean State Waves, falling to the hosts 7-4 in Friday night’s New England Collegiate Baseball League action at Old Mountain Field.

North Shore dropped to 11-16 while Ocean State improved to 11-16, as both teams sit tied for fourth place in the division standings.

First baseman Isaac Kim (UC Santa Barabara) was the sole Nav to reach base three times, going 2-for-4 with two singles and two RBI while reaching base on an error. Kim recorded his first multi-hit and second multi-RBI game of the summer while extending his hitting streak to six straight games since joining the team.

Center fielder Ryan Gerety (Northeastern) and shortstop Reece Moroney (Rhode Island) scored two runs apiece from the top positions in the batting order. Gerety worked two walks while stealing a base, while Moroney went 1-for-3 with a walk and two stolen bases. 

Navigators starter Truman Pauley (Harvard) pitched four shutout innings, striking out five while allowing just one base hit and stranding four Waves on the basepaths.

Pauley started his night with a 1-2-3 first inning, setting the first batter of the game down on strikes. The righty would retire the first five Waves batters before leaving the bases loaded in the second with a strikeout of catcher Thomas McAndrews (Fordham).

Gerety walked with one out to begin a third-inning rally before a Moroney single put runners on the corners. Kim delivered for North Shore, bringing both runners home on an error by Ocean State’s right fielder Logan Hughes to secure a 2-0 lead for the Navigators. 

In the bottom of the third, Navigators catcher Ryan MacDougall (Dayton) stepped up defensively, catching Waves center fielder Tommy Melusky (Oregon) attempting to steal second base, retiring his fourth batter attempting to steal a base this season. 

Pauley again worked out of a jam in the fourth inning, as the starter caught Tristan Head (Virginia) leaning off of second base with a well-executed pick-off play. Pauley finished another inning with a strikeout, his fifth of the evening. 

After a delay in the top of the fifth inning caused by the lights powering down, the Waves would jump on the board when shortstop Ryan Cooney (Oregon) doubled in two Ocean State baserunners. A wild pitch followed by a sacrifice fly from designated hitter Donovan Cash (Kennesaw State) gave the Waves a 4-2 lead by the end of the fifth.

In the seventh, Gerety and Moroney walked with one out to put pressure on the Waves, aided by a double steal that put both men in scoring position. Kim delivered again, smoking a two-RBI single to tie the contest at 4-4.

The Waves rallied in the eighth inning, as McAndrews hit a three-run home run to right field that gave Ocean State a 7-4 lead. Dawson Logie (Merrimack) earned the win thanks to a dominant relief effort, pitching 2.1 innings while striking out five of the seven men he faced.

Out of the North Shore bullpen, Jack Iannibelli (Stonehill) worked through three innings of relief with four strikeouts. Justin Posnik (Bentley) pitched the final frame, striking out two to give the Navs a chance in the late innings. 

The Navs return to Fraser Field for the start of a two-game homestand this weekend, hosting another divisional rival in the Newport Gulls at 5:05 p.m. on Saturday.