CHATHAM, Mass. – A light clap began when Luke Persico (UCLA) strode into the batter’s box with the bases loaded and two outs. One pitch later, as the ball sailed beyond the left field fence, the noise level escalated to a Veterans Field roar.

“He just walked in a run so I figured he was going with a fastball,” said Persico. “I was sitting dead red, and I got it.”

Persico’s grand slam punctuated a six-run third inning for the Anglers, and it was the first major blow in Chatham’s 12-4 victory over the Harwich Mariners.  The fence-clearing bullet was the third homer of the year for Persico, who moves into the team lead for that category.

Luke Persico drove in five RBIs Sunday night. |Flickr Gallery|

The other RBIs of the inning came from a Kyle Brooks (North Florida) single and a Nate Mondou (Wake Forest) bases-loaded walk. The RBI is the second on the year for Brooks, who drove in his first against Orleans Saturday night.

“The guys are starting to hit,” said Manager John Schiffner. “I told them that I’m so proud of the hitters because they adjusted. They did so many really good things with the coaching staff, and I’m proud of the coaches too.”

After tacking on one more in the sixth, the Anglers (12-11) broke the game open with five runs in the seventh. Will Craig (Wake Forest) started the scoring with an RBI single, and Luke Persico delivered his fifth RBI of the game two batters later. A Zack Short (Sacred Heart) two-run double put the exclamation mark on the frame.

The run support was plenty for Chatham pitcher Parker Dunshee (Wake Forest), who made his fourth start for the Anglers. The right-hander picked up his third win of the summer, but he did it with a contrasting style relative to his first two Ws. The Demon Deacon who had 10 strikeouts in his first 16 innings nearly doubled his total with 9 more Ks in six frames.

“I was able to use my slider well tonight,” said Dunshee. “Having that working as a put-out pitch really helped me to get those strikeouts.”

Cameron Stone (Stony Brook) celebrated his 20^th birthday by following Dunshee on the bump. The birthday boy struck out three Mariners in two scoreless innings.

“The changeup was working well and I was able to spot the fastball,” said Stone. “[Catcher Nick] Sciortino did a good job calling the game and mixing the pitches."

C.J. Burdick (San Diego) finished the game with one strikeout in a scoreless final inning.

The Anglers’ next host the Bourne Braves on Tuesday. Jake Godfrey (Louisiana State) is slated to make his first start for the Anglers. He has struck out four in three innings of scoreless relief on the summer. Bourne will likely counter with Nick Jensen-Clagg. He is 1-1 with a 2.13 ERA in 12.2 innings on the Cape.