Andrews Post late run stuns Brewer Monmouth eliminates Calais

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AUGUSTA – In a pitcher’s duel with no margin for error, Andrews Post of Portland scratched across an unearned run in the bottom of the eighth inning for a 2-1 victory over Brewer in a state American Legion tournament game played on two fields Monday evening.

The loss drops the Zone 1 champions (26-2) into an elimination-round game at 2 p.m. today against Monmouth, which eliminated Zone 1 runner-up Calais 11-1 earlier in the day in a game that ended in the eighth inning under the 10-run rule.

Andrews Post (25-3) advances to a winner’s bracket matchup at 4 p.m. against fellow Portland entry Nova Seafood, which defeated Bessey Motors of South Paris 13-1 in a seven-inning game. Bessey Motors faces a noon elimination game against Mid Coast, a 4-0 winner over Augusta in Monday’s other elimination contest.

The Brewer-Andrews matchup featured dominant pitching by Brewer lefty Chad Gomm and Andrews’ right-hander Rocco Toppi, who came on in relief in the third inning. Both pitchers mixed fastballs with a variety of off-speed pitches, leaving the hitters guessing – mostly incorrectly.

“Their guy did a good job keeping us off balance, and I was just trying to do what I could,” said Toppi. “I knew Brewer had a couple of dangerous hitters, so I was concentrating on the guys before them so when they came to the plate there wouldn’t be anyone on base.”

The game-winning rally began when Mike D’Andrea led off the bottom of the eighth with a single to left – Andrews’ second and final hit. Toppi sacrificed D’Andrea to second, and reached base himself on Gomm’s wide throw to first. John O’Brian then tried another sacrifice, but Gomm cut down D’Andrea at third base as Toppi advanced to second.

Joe Martin followed with a slow grounder to Brewer shortstop Jason Harvey. Harvey threw to Zac Bouzan-Kaloustian at second base for the forceout, but the throw to first for the double play sailed wide and Toppi scored to give Andrews a 2-1 lead.

“We made two mistakes that inning and you can’t do that at this level,” said Brewer coach David Morris. “But we’ll be back [today], we’re looking straight ahead.”

This game began on McGuire Field at the Augusta Babe Ruth Complex, but after the game’s second rain delay – lasting 45 minutes – left standing water in the infield, the game was moved in the third inning to adjacent Morton Field, where the drainage was better.

Brewer took a 1-0 lead in the top of the third. Marcus Boober walked off Andrews starter Matt Smart before the rains came and went to second on a one-out wild pitch, Smart’s second pitch after the rain delay. Andrews coach Mike Rutherford immediately replaced Smart with Toppi, who yielded an RBI single to the first batter he faced, Jake Knight, but allowed only three hits the rest of the way.

Gomm, meanwhile, was virtually untouchable before and after the rain delays. He followed up teammate Pat Moran’s no-hitter of a day earlier by retiring the first 14 batters he faced before making his only mistake, an 0-2 fastball that Joe Fessenden hit over the fence in right-center for a game-tying homer in the bottom of the fifth.

“It was a fastball I just didn’t get up enough,” Gomm said.

The recent Brewer High School graduate finished with eight strikeouts and just one walk in a complete-game effort.

“Chad’s pitched that way all summer,” said Morris. “He has unbelievable composure. He made that one mistake on an 0-2 pitch, but he overcame that and really shut them down.”

In the day’s first game, Monmouth’s Ben Muniz hit a two-run homer off Calais starter Ben Maloney in the first inning to give Monmouth a 2-0 lead, then added another two-run shot in the bottom of the fifth as the Zone 2 runners-up avoided elimination.

“I love this place,” said Muniz of Morton Field. “You just hit in the air to right, and it goes out.”

It was important for the St. Joseph’s College first baseman-outfielder to be able to circle the bases slowly, because his ability to run has been limited recently by a left groin tear.

“I did it swinging in practice,” said Muniz. “It’s funny, but swinging doesn’t hurt it now, just running and jumping.”

Seth Emery scored ahead of both Muniz homers, and finished with three singles and three runs scored for coach Chad Drouin’s club.

Monmouth starter Rickie Leavitt struck out seven and scattered six singles over the first seven innings for the pitching win..

Calais (14-15) scored its only run after two were out in the fourth inning. Scott Macdonald singled to left, stole second base and scored on an opposite-field single to right by Darrin Constant.

ANDREWS POST 2, BREWER 1

Brewer Falcons 1 (26-2) Andrews Post (25-3)

Player AB R H BI Player AB R H BI

Knight, cf 4 0 1 1 Martin, cf 4 0 0

Bouzn-Kalstian,2b 3 0 0 0 Kone-Colemn, ss 4 0

Harvey, ss 3 0 1 0 Koocher, 1b 3 0 0

Dalton, 1b 4 0 0 0 Baker, c 3 0 0

McAvoy, rf 4 0 0 0 Grimaldi, rf 3 0 0

Sheehan, 3b 4 0 1 0 Fessenden, lf 2 1 1

Gifford, dh 3 0 0 0 D’Andrea, 3b 3 0 0

Moran, dh 1 0 0 0 Toppi, dh/p 2 1 0

Boober, c 3 1 0 0 O’Brian, 2b 2 0 0

a-Davis 0 0 0 0

Mercer, lf 3 0 1 0

Totals 32 1 4 1 Totals 26 2 2 1

a-Davis ran for Boober in the 9th

Brewer 001 000 000 ? 1

Andrews Post 000 010 01x ? 2

E?Bouzan-Kaloustian 2, Gomm; D’Andrea 2, Kone-Coleman; LOB?Brewer 8, Andrews 3; HR?Fessenden; DP?O’Brian to Cone-Coleman to Koocher; S?Toppi; SB?Harvey, Mercer;

Brewer IP H R ER BB SO

Gomm (L, 5-1) 8 2 2 1 1 8

Andrews IP H R ER BB SO

Smart 2 1/3 0 1 1 1 2

Toppi (W, 6-1) 6 2/3 4 0 0 2 7

HBP?Bouzan-Kaloustian by Smart, O’Brian by Gomm; WP?Smart; T?2:40; ATT?175 (est.)

MONMOUTH 11, CALAIS 1

Calais (14-14) Monmouth (21-7)

Player AB R H BI Player AB R H BI

Ramsdell,3b.rf 4 0 0 0 Stroup, 3b 4 0

J. MacDonald, ss 3 0 1 0 Emery, 2b 3 1

Colbeth, lf 4 0 1 0 Muniz, 1b 4 2 5

Footer, 1b 4 0 0 0 a-McCarthy, pr 0 0 0

B. Maloney,p 4 0 0 0 Duchette, rf 5 1 1

Dyer, 2b 2 0 1 0 Wade, cf 3 1 0

S. MacDonald, cf 3 1 1 0 Guerette, dh 2 0

Pike, c 3 0 0 0 Daggett, dh 1 0 0

Constant, rf 1 0 1 1 Shaffstall, lf 3 0 0

D. Maloney, p 1 0 1 0 Poulin, lf 1 0

Buckley, c 4 1 1 2

Labbe, ss 3 2 1 1

Totals 29 1 6 1 Totals 33 11 11 10

a-McCarthy ran for Muniz in 8th

Calais 000 100 00 ? 1

Monmouth 200 322 02 ? 11

E?Dyer, J. MacDonald 2, Buckley; Stroup; LOB?Calais 7, Monmouth 6; 2B?Buckley, Wade; HR?Muniz 2; DP?Dyer-J. MacDonald-Footer; Labbe-Emery-Muniz; SF?Emery; SB?S. MacDonald; Duchette, Wade, Labbe

Calais IP H R ER BB SO

B. Maloney (L, 5-3) 5 9 8 8 3 0

D. Maloney 1 1 1 1 1 0

McLay 1 2/3 1 2 0 0 1

Monmouth IP H R ER BB SO

Leavitt (W, 6-2) 7 6 1 1 2 7

Gardner 1 0 0 0 0 1

HBP?Constant by Leavitt; Muniz by McLay; WP?D. Maloney, McLay; T?1:55; ATT?100 (est.)