Buckfield shuts out Lee to keep state crown Experience, pitching keys

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GORHAM – An entire year had passed and, on the surface, not much appeared to have changed.

Defending champion Buckfield and Lee Academy were both back in the state Class D softball title game Monday.

The big difference was, the Bucks lineup was laden with eight seniors, while the Eastern Maine champion Pandas repeated with six new starters and a youthful lineup that included three freshmen.

Buckfield’s power pitching and experience were too much to overcome Monday as the Bucks annexed the Class D crown with a convincing 12-0 victory at Robie Field.

Coach Dan Jack’s team teed off to the tune of 16 hits before the 12-run rule was invoked with one out in the fifth inning. Buckfield finished the season 15-2.

A surprising Lee Academy squad was unable to slow down the Bucks’ relentless offensive onslaught. Coach Ron Weatherbee’s Pandas wound up 14-6, losing for the first time this season to a Class D opponent.

“They hit the ball extremely well,” Weatherbee said. “What they didn’t hit well, they bunted well. Everything they hit ended up in their favor.”

Senior Danielle Buswell, who after the game said she hadn’t been feeling well, dominated from the outset. The righthander surrendered only a two-out double to Jessie Kuester in the first inning.

Using a lively fastball and an occasional change of pace, Buswell struck out 10 in five innings. She walked five, struggling with her control in the fourth inning, but came back to register a strikeout after having walked the bases loaded after two were out.

“Everybody was looking forward to it,” Kuester said. “We thought maybe we could pull it out, but I guess not. We left some people on base.”

Leadoff hitter Coleen Violette, another of Buckfield’s seniors, paced the offense with three singles and two RBIs. Emily Johnson provided two singles and two RBIs while Charlee Hayes, Mandy Roy (double), and Shayna Shackford each stroked two hits.

Each of the Bucks’ nine starters posted at least one hit in the contest, while pinch hitter Desiree Brackett added a pinch-hit RBI double to help clinch it in the fifth.

Lee freshman Marci Moors is a control pitcher who throws strikes and allows her defense to take care of the rest. Monday evening, Buckfield hit the ball hard and was able to find openings in the Panda defense.

“We were pretty confident, but we didn’t want to be overconfident after what happened in the Western Maine finals, only beating Richmond 5-4,” said Violette, who admitted the offensive success seems to snowball.

“That feels really good and it gets everybody pumped up and keeps us alive,” Violette said.

The Bucks also played errorless defense behind Buswell, but were forced to handle only five chances.

Buckfield scored all the runs it would need in the first inning. Violette led off with a ground-ball single to left and moved up on a sacrifice bunt. Hayes followed with a line-drive single and took third when the ball got past the left fielder.

Johnson walked, and Buswell aided her own cause by stroking a sharp, two-run single to center. The Bucks seemed to be able to continue building momentum from that point on.

“We were inexperienced, by all means,” Weatherbee said. “The first couple innings we were fine, but once things started to slide and everything they hit was a base hit and we couldn’t get the bat on the ball with any regularity, I think that was the start of the downfall.”

The Pandas stranded three runners in the first two innings, then couldn’t capitalize on the three consecutive walks Buswell issued in the fourth.

BUCKS 12, PANDAS 0

LEE ACADEMY (14-6) BUCKFIELD (15-2)

Player AB R H BI Player AB R H BI

Gifford ss 3 0 0 0 Violette c 4 3 2

Hersom 1b 2 0 0 0 Litchfield ss 2 1 0

Kuester 3b 3 0 1 0 b-Brackett 1 0 1

Mallett lf 2 0 0 0 Hayes 3b 3 2 1

J. Moors 2b 1 0 0 0 Johnson lf 2 1 2

M. Moors p 1 0 0 0 Buswell p 3 0 2

Cole c 1 0 0 0 Dunn rf 2 0 1 1

Ham rf 0 0 0 0 a-Darling 1 0 0

Read cf 2 0 0 0 Roy cf 3 1 2 0

Marston 2b 2 2 1 0

Shackford 1b 3 2 2 1

Totals 15 0 1 0 Totals 26 12 16 10

a-ran for Buswell in 1st and lined out for Dunn in 4th; doubled for Litchfield in the 5th

Lee Academy 000 00 ? 0

Buckfield 311 34 ? 12

E?Mallett, J. Moors; LOB?Lee Academy 6, Buckfield 4; 2B?Kuester; Brackett, Roy; 3B?Shackford; DP?Gifford-J. Moors-Hersom; Litchfield-Shackford; S?Litchfield; SB?J. Moors, Ham, M. Moors; Johnson, Marston

Lee Academy IP H R ER BB SO

M. Moors (L, 14-6) 4 1/3 16 12 12 2 0

Home IP H R ER BB SO

Buswell (W, 15-2) 5 1 0 0 5 10

HBP?J. Moors (by Buswell); WP?M. Moors; PB?Violette; T?1:01; ATT?400 (est.)