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BREWER – Jackie Moors stepped to the plate in the seventh inning of Tuesday’s Eastern Maine Class D softball championship game with the game tied.
Lee Academy’s freshman second baseman had only one thought on her mind: Relax.
Moors delivered a wind-blown fly ball hit to right field, calmly ran through her coach’s “stop” signal as she rounded second base, then raced home when the relay throw got away, lifting the fourth-seeded Pandas to a 2-1 victory over No. 3 Bangor Christian at Coffin Field.
“I was thinking I’d probably get a double out of it, but when I saw it go by [the right fielder], [coach] told me to stop at second but I kept on going,” said Moors, who chuckled while admitting she saw the sign but went instead with her instincts.
“I slid at third, then I saw I still could make it home, so I just went for it,” she said.
Coach Ron Weatherbee’s 14-5 Lee Academy team plays Western Maine champ Buckfield (14-2) in Saturday’s 4 p.m. state title game at Gorham High School.
Weatherbee couldn’t help but smile while talking about Moors’ aggressive baserunning.
“She comes to third when I tell her to stay at second, then they threw it by,” said Weatherbee, who began shouting ‘”good job'” as she popped up and headed for home.
“She didn’t hesitate. I looked to see who was back there [to get the ball] and, meanwhile, she was gone,” he said.
Tuesday’s heroics were nothing new for the Pandas, who won their second straight EM crown. Twice during the regular season, Lee had rallied to edge the Patriots (11-8) by a run with a seventh-inning rally.
In the May 14 meeting at Lee, the Pandas overcame an early 8-0 deficit.
“We stuck in there. It always seems like at the last minute we pull this miracle out. It’s awesome,” said Marci Moors, Jackie’s twin sister, who pitched a five-hitter, striking out five and walking three.
Bangor Christian pitcher Kara Hartman deserved a better fate. The senior lefthander allowed only three hits while using a lively fastball to strike out 13. She walked one and the Pandas hit the ball out of the infield only twice.
Hartman finished the season with 214 strikeouts.
The Patriots committed only two errors, but both of them were costly.
Lee took a 1-0 lead in the third when Sam Cole drew a leadoff walk, stole second and scored on a two-out fielding error on a throw to first base.
Bangor Christian tied it in the sixth. Gabby Eastman roped a leadoff double that tipped off the glove of sprinting center fielder Kaitlyn Read, advanced on a groundout and rode home on Andrea Sage’s hard ground-ball single to left.
“We were right where we wanted to be, but it just wasn’t there for us,” said BC coach Tom Obey. “[Hartman] is the backbone of our team. She did her job. We just didn’t back her up well.”
The Patriots, who stranded eight baserunners, had threatened in the top of the seventh. Laura Hamm rolled a single to right and moved up on a passed ball, but Marci Moors retired the next three hitters.
Lee repeated as EM champ despite having to replace six starters off last year’s team.
“All of these kids have played with a lot of maturity in a hurry,” Weatherbee said.
PANDAS 2, PATRIOTS 1
Bangor Christian (11-8) Lee Acad. (14-5)
Player AB R H BI Player AB R H BI
Leathers, ss 4 0 0 0 Gifford, ss 3 0 0
Hartman, p 4 0 2 0 Hersom, 1b 3 0 0
Miller, 1b 4 0 0 0 Kuester, 3b 3 0 0
Eastman, ss 3 1 1 0 Mallett, lf 3 0 0
Babineau, dh 2 0 0 0 J. Moors, 2b 3 1 0
Hutchins, rf 0 0 0 0 M. Moors, p 2 0 0
Sage, cf 3 0 1 1 Cole, c 1 1 0 0
Veilleux, 2b 1 0 0 0 Ham, rf 2 0 1 0
Miller, 3b 2 0 0 0 Read, cf 2 0 0
b-Libby 1 0 0 0
Hamm, lf 3 0 1 0
a-Sherman 0 0 0 0
Totals 27 1 5 1 Totals 22 2 3 0
a-courtesy runner for Hartman in the 1st, 3rd; ran for Hamm in the 7th; b-grounded out for Miller in the 6th
Bangor Christian 000 001 0 ? 1
Lee Academy 001 000 1 ? 2
None out when winning run scored
E?Gifford, Mallett; Miller, Veilleux; LOB?BC 8; Lee 3; 2B?Eastman; 3B?J. Moors; SB?Leathers; Cole, Hamm
Bangor Christian IP H R ER BB SO
Hartman (L) 6 3 2 0 1 13
Lee Academy IP H R ER BB SO
M. Moors (W) 7 5 1 1 3 5
Hartman faced one batter in the 7th
WP?M. Moors; PB?Cole; T?1:25; ATT?250 (est.)
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