Rams take early lead, beat Riots Shain, Proctor, Hall keys in Bangor win

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BANGOR – On a blustery day when fly balls turned to triples and pitchers struggled to throw wind-blown curveballs for strikes, Saturday’s final play aptly summed up an entertaining high school baseball game.

Bases loaded. Class B Orono threatening to take a big chunk out of a 10-3 deficit against perennial Class A power Bangor.

Brian Tyne rips a line drive to left-center. Reserve center fielder Mike Larochelle sprints … dives … reaches out his glove.

Let’s let him tell you the rest.

“I was watching it into my glove,” Larochelle said. “It must have just hit off the lip of my glove.”

After that, things got very interesting.

The ball caromed off Larochelle’s forehead and ended up going straight up in the air. Left fielder Tom Twombly swooped in to catch the ball before it hit the ground.

Then he rifled the ball to the infield to double the Orono runner off second base.

Game over. Bangor wins, 10-3.

“I don’t believe it,” Larochelle said with a grin, rubbing his sore forehead. “It’s amazing.”

The Rams, who served as the visiting team at their home Mansfield Stadium because Orono’s field was too wet, improved to 3-1. The Riots dropped to 1-3.

The Rams wasted no time getting all the runs they’d need, tallying four runs on four hits in the top of the first against Orono’s Derek Sinclair.

Chris Bombardier and Andy Treadwell provided RBI singles to start the uprising and Buddy Nickerson knocked in another with a booming wind-blown triple to right.

The Rams scored single runs in the second and third before blowing the game open with a four-run fifth.

Bangor substituted liberally after that and managed to give 19 players some needed work. Derrick Shain exited after a solid five-inning effort. Shain allowed just one unearned run on three hits, striking out three and walking four.

“Four runs [in the first inning] is a nice cushion,” Shain said. “You don’t have to worry about giving up a hit here [and there]. You just have to throw strikes.”

Kevin Proctor tripled, singled and drove in two runs for Bangor while Nickerson also had two RBIs. Nate Hall singled, doubled and scored three runs.

Orono, which is dealing with the aftermath of suspensions that resulted when several students attended a party where a keg of beer was confiscated, stranded 11 runners despite being limited to four hits.

Brandon Terrill singled, doubled and knocked in a run for the Red Riots.

“We’ve lost seven guys for one reason or another,” coach Aaron Watson said. “It’s frustrating, but at the same time, it gives the other kids an opportunity to play.”

Bangor coach Jeff Fahey said he was pleased with his team’s offense, and not overly disappointed with some defensive miscues that the windy conditions contributed to. The Rams committed four errors that led to all three Orono runs.

And he was impressed by the play turned in by Larochelle and Twombly.

“For our left fielder to even get over there is a good effort,” Fahey said. “That’s great hustle.”

RAMS 10, RED RIOTS 3

(Saturday Afternoon)

Bangor (3-1) Orono (1-3)

Player AB R H BI Player AB R H BI

Hall, rf 4 3 2 0 Merritt, ss 4 0 0

Worster, rf 0 0 0 0 Sinclair, p-3b 3 1 0

Proctor, 3b 2 1 2 2 Levesque, rf 3 0 1

Dennis, 3b-ss 0 0 0 0 Hilton, 3b-p-1b 3 0

Bombardier, ss 3 1 1 1 Skall, cf 4 0

Baker, 3b 0 0 0 0 Terrill, 1b-p 3 0 1

Treadwell, lf-p 3 1 1 1 D. Thomas, c 1 0

McBreairty, lf 1 0 0 0 Smyth, lf 1 0

Young, 1b 4 1 1 1 Kelley, 2b 1 0 0

Heath, 1b 0 0 0 0 Tyne, 2b 2 0 0

Clarke, dh 3 0 1 0

Chaiken, dh 1 1 0 0

Willette, c 0 0 0 0

Nickerson, cf 3 1 2 2

Mi. Larochelle 1 0 0 0

Shain, p 3 1 1 1

Twombly, lf 1 0 0 0

N. Larochelle, 2b 2 0 0 0

Ma. Larochelle, 2b 1 0 0 0

Totals 32 10 11 8 Totals 25 3 4 2

Bangor 411 040 0 ? 10

Orono 100 001 1 ? 3

E?Hall, Shain, Mi. Larochelle, Baker; LOB?Bangor 5, Orono 11; 2B?Hall, Clarke; 3B?Nickerson, Proctor, Shain; DP?Mi. Larochelle-Twombly-Ma. Larochelle; S?N. Larochelle; Smyth, Kelley; SF?Proctor; SB?Treadwell 2

Bangor IP H R ER BB SO

Shain (W, 1-0) 5 3 1 0 4 3

Treadwell 1? 1 2 0 4 1

Fergerson ? 0 0 0 1 0

Orono IP H R ER BB SO

Sinclair (L, 0-1) 5 11 10 8 2 2

Hilton 1 0 0 0 0 2

Terrill 1 0 0 0 0 1

WP?Treadwell; BK?Sinclair; T?2:01; ATT?100 (est.)