BREWER – Conditions were far from ideal for Tuesday afternoon’s Eastern Maine Class D softball championship game at Coffin Field.

A 35-degree drop in temperature all the way down into the 50s and a steady mist that became a steady, light shower made life tough for No. 3 Lee Academy and top-ranked Southern Aroostook of Dyer Brook as players slip-slided their way all over the basepaths and the field.

The Lee Pandas rallied to knock off the Warriors 14-8.

The conditions turned what looked like a certain three-run double into a bases-clearing single in the top of the seventh inning for Lee’s Liz Read, but after tripping and falling just after rounding first and scrambling back, Read broke into a big smile and laughed at herself.

It’s hard to be angry after ripping a fastball hit to right field with one out and the bases loaded and giving your team a 12-8 lead in the final inning.

“I fell, but I was still pretty happy about it,” Read said. “I just wanted to get on base and get someone home.”

She got three someones home and had the key hit as the Pandas won their third EM regional title in four years and continued a remarkable turnaround from a six-win team last season to a 15-4 Class D state finalist despite playing five freshman starters.

“The freshmen played very well today and they’ve been a big reason we’ve done as well as we have this year,” said Lee coach Ron Weatherbee, whose young Pandas will take on Western Maine champ Richmond (16-2) in a 4 p.m. Saturday state final at Saint Joseph’s College in Standish. The Warriors wound up 14-4.

Read also drove in two runs with a hard single down the third base line and into left field and had five RBIs on the day. Fellow freshman Brooke Harris notched her 15th win despite yielding 10 hits.

“I wasn’t having a very good game pitching. The rain was tough and I don’t know what was wrong for me, but it was really tough,” said Harris. “My fastball wasn’t working too well today, but my changeup was working well and my curve was pretty decent. My team really came through for me.”

Freshman first baseman Amanda Gifford had two singles and three RBIs and freshman catcher Aarika Ritchie had two singles and two RBIs.

“They’ve stepped up and played very well, unlike most freshmen,” Weatherbee said.

That’s not to say the veterans didn’t have a say. Senior and multi-sports star Shelby Pickering sparked the team’s offense late with a leadoff wall-ball double to left-center that barely missed going over the fence.

“I knew I had to get hitting because once we have one big one, everyone starts doing it, and it just kind of piles up,” said Pickering.

A hit batter, two outs, and a walk later, Gifford hit a two-strike fastball to shallow center to tie the game at 8-8.

After three walks and an error gave Lee a 9-8 lead to set up Read’s dramatic hit, the Pandas kept it up with a two-out RBI single by Gifford and an error – one of three by the Warriors in the inning.

It wasn’t an optimum day for clean fielding as the eight errors committed in the game can attest. Also several players slipped and fell fielding the ball as well as running the bases. Two almost wiped out after tagging a slippery home plate.

“I fell three times today, once at home plate… I’m a klutz,” said Read, who was covered in mud but still smiling.

Junior Marci Moors also did well at the plate with two RBI singles for the Pandas.

Amanda Charette led the way for the Warriors with a double, a single, and four RBIs.

The 1-2-3 portion of the order was especially productive for the Warriors as Kaylea Collier, Jordan Shuller, and Audrey Charette each had two hits. Shuller and Audrey Charette had one RBI apiece.

“We scored eight and that’s usually enough for us, but it wasn’t today,” said SAHS coach Jon Porter. “We left runners on a few times. We had a big hit with the bases loaded and two out by Amanda, but they seemed to get the big hit more often than we did.”

PANDAS 14, WARRIORS 8

Lee Academy (15-4) So. Aroostook (14-4)

Player AB R H BI Player AB R H BI

K. Harris, lf 3 1 0 0 K. Collier, ss 3 0

Pickering, ss 3 3 1 0 Sholler, lf 4 1

Ritchie, c 2 4 2 2 Au. Charette, c 5 0 1

M. Moors, dp 5 0 2 2 Lawlor, cf 4 0 0

Houghton, 2b 0 0 0 0 Am. Charette, rf 4 4

Read, rf 5 1 2 5 R. King, 1b 4 0 0

M. Ham, pr 0 2 0 0 Clark, 3b 4 1 0

J. Moors, 3b 4 0 0 0 Hardy, 2b 3 1 0

Gifford, 1b 4 1 2 3 C. Collier, p 2 0 0

B. Harris, p 5 0 1 0 C. King, pr 0 1 0

McLaughlin, cr 0 0 0 0

Bird, cf 2 2 0 0

Totals 33 14 10 12 Totals 33 8 10 6

Lee Academy 301 202 6 – 14

Southern Aroostook 200 330 0 – 8

E-Pickering, Houghton, J. Moors, B. Harris; K. Collier, Am. Charette, R. King, Hardy; LOB-Lee 10; So. Aroostook 11; 2B-Pickering; Am. Charette; 3B-Ritchie; S-K. Harris; SF-Sholler; SB-J. Moors, Read, K. Harris; Clark

Lee IP H R ER BB SO

B. Harris (W, 15-4) 7 10 8 6 3 6

So. Aroostook IP H R ER BB SO

C. Collier (L, 12-3) 7 10 14 10 9 3

HBP-K. Collier (by B. Harris), Hardy (by B. Harris); Bird (by C. Collier), Ritchie (by C. Collier); T-1:53; ATT-700 (est.)