Crabs Celebrate America’s 250th with 8-1 Win Over FerryHawks

Over 4.000 fans pack Regency Furniture Stadium despite delay

W: Kyle Virbitsky (7-2)

L: Brandon Haston (0-7)

HLD: Anthony Hoopii-Tuionetoa (1)

WALDORF, MD – On the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States, the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs (43-22, 2-0) celebrated with an 8-1 win over the Staten Island FerryHawks (10-55, 0-2) in front of over 4,000 fans at Regency Furniture Stadium. Ethan Wilson led the offense with a home run while Kyle Virbitsky provided his fourth quality start of the season.

The Blue Crabs took advantage of an early miscue by the FerryHawks to score the game’s first run. Stephen Paolini hit a ground ball on the first pitch thrown by Staten Island starting pitcher Brandon Haston, but it was mishandled by Brandon Wagner at first base and Paolini ended up at third base. Brody Fahr brought him in with an RBI groundout to give the Crabs a 1-0 lead.

Another mistake proved costly for Staten Island in the bottom of the fourth inning. Danny Bautista Jr. scored courtesy of a fielding error by Staten Island third baseman Lamar Briggs and a Paolini RBI groundout followed to extend the Blue Crabs’ lead to 3-0.

Southern Maryland added two more runs in the bottom of the fifth inning. Staten Island relief pitcher Hiro Yamada got two outs around an Ezequiel Pagan walk, but then Ethan Wilson lifted a two-run home run to left field, his fifth homer of the season, to pad Southern Maryland’s lead to 5-0.

The FerryHawks got on the board with a leadoff home run by Blake Rutherford in the top of the sixth inning. Virbitsky was able to work around the damage to keep the Blue Crabs in front by the score of 5-1.

Virbitsky had to work around constant trouble, but he held the FerryHawks to just one run over 6.2 strong innings. He worked around six hits, five walks, and a wild pitch while posting four strikeouts. He has lowered his ERA to 3.74, the best mark in the league.

The Crabs got some cushion with two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning. Another Staten Island error allowed Paolini to score. Pagan added a two-run single to push the Blue Crabs out to an 8-1 lead.

A tandem of Anthony Hoopii-Tuionetoa and Endrys Briceno kept the FerryHawks off the scoreboard to finish off an 8-1 win.

The Blue Crabs finish their three-game series against the Staten Island FerryHawks on Sunday, July 5 at Regency Furniture Stadium. First pitch is at 1:05 pm as the Crabs conclude their Red, White, and Blue Crab Independence Day celebrations. To purchase tickets, click here.

The Southern Maryland Blue Crabs have been proud members of the Atlantic League since 2008, the fourth-longest tenured team in the league. With a proud tradition of success on and off the field, many players have found a home while playing in front of Crustacean Nation, the nickname for the Blue Crabs’ avid fanbase. A host of former Major Leaguers have played for the Blue Crabs, including Chien-Ming Wang, Pat Mahomes Sr., and team legend Daryl Thompson. Many players have also made it to the Major Leagues after playing with Southern Maryland, including Isaac Mattson of the Pittsburgh Pirates. 2026 marks the 18th season of Blue Crabs baseball at Regency Furniture Stadium, where Clawsome Times Await.