Big hits lift Lee by Shead for championship

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BANGOR – Lee Academy pounded out 10 hits – four for extra bases – in defeating Shead of Eastport 14-4 to win the Eastern Maine Class D baseball title for the second time in three years at Mansfield Stadium on Wednesday night.

But despite the 10-run difference that ended this game in the sixth inning, this contest turned on a single play.

Trailing 8-0 after a six-run Lee rally in the third inning, Shead battled back to score four runs in the top of the fourth – only to have Lee center fielder Andrew Stevens make a diving catch to rob Cody Bulmer of a potential two-run triple that would have cut the gap to 8-6.

“I saw it come off the bat and I didn’t think I was going to get it,” said Stevens, a junior. “I just had to dive for it.”

Stevens dove to his right, and made the catch about a foot off the ground not only to deny Bulmer two RBIs, but to deny Shead a chance to turn this game around.

“It was a great play,” said Shead coach Ron Sullivan. “You’ve got to hand it to the kid from Lee, he got a good jump on the ball, and it stopped the rally.”

Lee countered with three runs in the bottom of the fourth to extend its lead to 11-4, capitalizing on four of Shead’s eight errors for the game.

The Pandas ended the game two innings later. Tyler Thompson hit a leadoff double, Nate Dow walked and Everett Houghton followed with an infield single to plate pinch-runner T.J. Braley.

One out later, Gerry Worster doubled home pinch runners Travis Linscott and Derek Worster to give the top-ranked Pandas their 10-run margin of victory.

The win sends Lee (16-3) to Saturday’s state final at Mansfield against two-time defending state champion North Yarmouth Academy. NYA (15-1) defeated Buckfield 5-1 in Wednesday’s Western D final, and defeated Lee 12-6 in the 2002 state title game.

No. 3 Shead, which lost in the regional final for the second straight year, finishes at 13-2.

Dow, a senior righthander, scattered seven hits while striking out eight and walking two. He retired nine of the first 10 batters he faced, giving Shead particular problems with his off-speed pitches.

“The scouting report we got was that those guys were good fastball hitters, but had a little trouble with the breaking pitch,” said Lee coach Randy Harris. “Nate’s got that little sidearm slider and the overhand curve, and he had his breaking pitches working.”

Gerry Worster doubled and tripled with three RBIs for the Pandas, while Houghton tripled and singled with three RBIs as Lee scored in double figures for the 15th time this season.

Matt Altvater had a two-run triple and a single for Shead.

“Obviously I wish we’d played a little better,” said Sullivan, who graduated seven starters from his 2003 team. “We had nine games this year when we didn’t make an error, but defense wins championships.”

Gerry Worster tripled home a run and scored on a delayed steal situation as Lee took a 2-0 lead in the second inning.

The Pandas sent nine batters to the plate against Shead lefthander Derek Maloney in the third, scoring six runs on two hits and three Shead errors.

Houghton highlighted that rally with a two-run triple, while Dow added a two-run single up the middle and Blaine Clark plated a run on a suicide squeeze.

Shead finally reached Dow for four runs on five hits in the top of the fourth. Maloney hit a one-out infield single and Aaron Sullivan walked, then Josh Francis hit an RBI single to right. After a balk, Altvater tripled home two runs, and Altvater scored on a two-out infield single by Dana Bowen.

Ricky Kroll singled to right to put runners on first and third, but Stevens then dove to grab Bulmer’s liner before it reached the gap to end the rally.

“That’s a game-saver,” said Harris. “If he doesn’t make that catch, at best it’s 8-6 getting out of the inning and it’s going to be a dogfight the rest of the way. Instead, he makes that great catch, we come out and put three runs on the board, and instead of it being a one-run game, boom, it’s seven.”

PANDAS 14, TIGERS 4

Shead (13-2) Lee Academy (16-3)

Player AB R H BI Player AB R H BI

Bulmer, cf 4 0 0 0 Currie, c 3 2 0

Maloney, p 3 1 1 0 King, rf 4 2 1

Sullivan, ss 2 1 0 0 Thompson, ss 3 1 0

Francis, 3b 3 1 1 1 Braley, pr 0 1 0

Altvater, 1b 3 1 2 2 Dow, p 3 1 1 2

Lewey, 2b 3 0 0 0 Linscott, pr 0 1 0

Martinez, lf 3 0 1 0 Houghton, 3b-lf 4 1 3

Bowen, c 3 0 1 1 D. Worster, pr 0 1 0

Kroll, rf 2 0 1 0 Clark, dh 3 1 1

Stevens, cf 0 0 0 0

G. Worster, 2b 4 1 2 3

Boulrisse, 1b 1 0 0 0

McIver, pr 0 0 0 0

Ro, lf 0 0 0 0

Doane, 3b 3 2 1 0

Totals 26 4 7 4 Totals 28 14 10 10

Shead 000 400 ? 4

Lee Academy 026 303 ? 14

E?Sullivan 2, Lewey 2, Maloney 2, Francis, Bowen; Thompson; LOB?Shead 6, Lee 4; 2B?Thompson, G. Worster; 3B?Altvater; Houghton, G. Worster; DP?Shead 3; S?Clark; SB?King 2, Currie, Maloney

Shead IP H R ER BB SO

Maloney (L,7-1) 5 2/3 10 14 5 2 4

Lee Academy IP H R ER BB SO

Dow (W,3-2) 6 7 4 4 2 8

HBP?Currie, Thompson, Boulrisse by Maloney; WP?Maloney, Dow; BK?Dow; PB?Bowen; T?1:48; ATT?500 (est.)