The Telstar pitcher strikes out eight batters to earn a 2-0 shutout against Winthrop.

BETHEL – Even a little bit of rain could not derail Telstar’s Terry Collins on Wednesday.

Pitching in his third game of the season, Collins threw 82 pitches against Winthrop, striking out eight batters and facing just three over the minimum to lead the Rebels to a 2-0 shutout over the Ramblers in MVC baseball action.

The win is the third of the season for Collins. He is 3-0, has two shutouts and has not yet allowed an earned run, allowing just three total hits in his last two games.

“Terry’s been in the shadow of Wade Osgood for two years now,” Telstar coach Bob Remington said. “He’s probably been one of the best No. 2 starters in the state for two years and he’s showing that he’s ready to take over.”

But the Telstar junior wasn’t the only pitcher giving hitters fits. Sophomore Winthrop hurler Corey Gillespe mixed his pitches well and allowed just three hits and one walk in six innings. He allowed just two runners to reach third base all game, and both scored.

“He certainly did his job today,” Winthrop coach Mark Fortin said. “It’s just too bad we couldn’t help him out.”

Facing Collins, Winthrop hitters actually knew which pitches were coming all game, but they couldn’t get around on any of them.

“We had one player in the dugout that called almost every pitch from start to finish without fail,” Fortin said. “We still couldn’t hit him.”

The Telstar bats had just as hard a time, but they got a few breaks to help them along the way. In the second inning, Gillespe issued his only free pass of the afternoon and Kurt Wight made him pay, smacking a double deep to center field, scoring Peter Poor.

“I got an outside fastball,” Wight said. “I saw it the whole way. It almost got out of here. With Terry pitching, we knew all we needed was one or two.”

The Rebels got the second thanks to a fielding error in the bottom of the sixth. Casey Fleet reached first after slapping a grounder to Jason Allen at shortstop. Allen never got the ball out of his glove, and after a wild pitch Fleet scored on a Billy Mitchell single,

“It could have been more on both sides,” Remington said. “Both center fielders, in particular, played well.”

“If the mistakes that we make are physical, you can handle that,” Fortin said. “When it’s mental it’s tougher to swallow.”

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