Bangor beats Saco in last inning twice Team wins state title, headed to Regional

BANGOR – Payson Nichols’ RBI single highlighted a three-run, seventh-inning rally Tuesday night as Bangor came from behind for the second time of the day to beat Saco 5-3 in the championship game of the Senior League Baseball State Tournament at Mansfield Stadium in Bangor.

Bangor, which was forced to beat Saco twice Tuesday, advances to the Eastern Regional tournament for 13- and 14-year-olds, which begins Aug. 3 in Thoroughfare, N.J.

A wild pitch and an error produced runs during Bangor’s seventh-inning uprising. Mike LaRochelle pitched 11/3 innings of shutout ball to earn the win.

Ryan Willette singled twice and drove in a run and Nate Hall hit two singles for Bangor.

Tom Danylic singled twice for Saco, which made four errors.

Bangor (4-1) 100 010 3 – 5 10 1

Saco (2-2) 010 002 0 – 3 6 4

Dennis, LaRochelle (6) and Dowe; Barone, Compson (6), Martin (7) and Danylic, Grenier (6)

Bangor 9, Saco 7

At Mansfield Stadium in Bangor, Nate Hall stroked an RBI single and Josh Heath hit a sacrifice fly to spark a two-run eighth inning as Bangor won and forced a second game. The contest was delayed for 45 minutes by a thunderstorm.

Bangor had scored five runs in the third inning to take the lead, but Saco eventually tied it, scoring in the bottom of the sixth. Heath, who went the distance, contributed two singles and two other RBIs for the winners.

Ryan Willette singled twice with two RBIs and Payson Nichols singled twice.

Keil Martin singled three times for Saco and Derek Benavides rapped two singles.

(First Game, 8 innings)

Bangor (3-1) 005 020 02 – 9 11 3

Saco (2-1) 202 021 00 – 7 9 1

Heath and Dowe; McGhee, Merrill (5), Benavides (7) and Tanylic, Grenier (3)

Junior League softball

Auburn 12, Old Town 10

At Auburn, Jenna Brown’s RBI single provided the go-ahead run in the fifth inning as Auburn eliminated Old Town 12-10 in a Little League softball 13-14 division game.

Auburn erased a 7-3 deficit in the fifth while advancing to the championship round.

Katelyn Chamberlain doubled and singled with one RBI and Allie Sasser singled twice with two RBIs for the Auburn, which prevailed despite eight errors.

Elizabeth Bergeron paced Old Town with two singles, two RBIs, and three runs scored. Jen Higgins provided a run-scoring single and scored three times, while Monica Hussey tripled.

Old Town (2-2) 301 303 0 – 10 8 2

Auburn (2-1) 101 163 x – 12 6 8

Hussey, Bergeron (6) and Carey; Verill and Thongsavanh