BANGOR – You can forgive the Bangor High School baseball team for wanting the playoffs to begin tomorrow.

Such is the state of confidence among the Rams, who wrapped up their regular season with a 14-0 five-inning victory over Nokomis of Newport at Mansfield Stadium on Tuesday evening.

Coach Jeff Fahey’s club (14-2) will enter postseason play a week from Thursday ranked No. 1 in Eastern Maine Class A and riding a seven-game winning streak.

“I knew we were going to have a good year, but 14-2 is a pretty good record because there are some good teams in our conference,” said senior first baseman Scott Hackett.

And that success has not been based merely on one phase of the game.

After Jim Cox’s three-hitter against Nokomis – the Rams’ fourth shutout in the last six games – Bangor’s team ERA is hovering around 2.00. The Rams’ defense has yielded just seven earned runs in 16 games, and the team batting average is .320.

“This is probably one of the most well-rounded teams I’ve been on, and I’ve played on some good teams,” said Hackett. “Up and down the order there are no easy outs, and I’ve got confidence in every one of our pitchers that they’re going to throw strikes and get guys out. I’m just looking forward to the playoffs now.”

Another key for the Rams during their recent winning streak is that comebacks haven’t been required.

“We’ve been focusing on getting at teams earlier in the games, putting teams away early,” said sophomore shortstop Ian Edwards.

Bangor put away a rebuilding 1-15 Nokomis team early, scoring three runs in each of the first two innings and seven runs in the bottom of the third.

Hackett had a two-run single and scored on Edwards’ two-out double in the first. Run-scoring singles by Ryan Jones and Ben Estabrook and a sacrifice fly by Hackett made it 6-0 through two innings.

A leadoff single by Edwards in the third was followed by consecutive doubles by Shane Walton, Tyson Barron and Jones – the Nos. 7, 8 and 9 batters in the order – as the Rams went on to send 12 batters to the plate and extend their lead to 12-0.

Cox, meanwhile, escaped a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the second with back-to-back strikeouts, then stranded two other Warrior baserunners – including Isaac Osborne, who had doubled – in the third as he retired the last eight batters he faced. The senior righthander, struck out nine, walked one and hit a batter in improving his record to 6-0.

Edwards, Barron and Jones each doubled and singled to pace Bangor’s 14-hit attack, while Kyle Vanidestine and -Gordon Webb each singled twice and Hackett drove home three runs.

“I think we’ve just learned from each other and gotten better with each game,” Cox said. “Our batting’s improved all year, our pitching’s improved all year, so we just keep getting better.”

Let the playoffs begin.

RAMS 14, WARRIORS 0

Nokomis (1-15) Bangor (14-2)

Player AB R H BI Player AB R H BI

Boillard, p-ss 3 0 0 0 Vanidestine, rf 3 1

Osborne, 2b 3 0 1 0 Estabrook, dh 2 2 1

Harding, 3b-p 2 0 1 0 Cox, p 0 0 1

Donaldson, c 2 0 0 0 Webb, c 3 0 2 0

R. Hopkins, cf 1 0 0 0 Seeley, c 1 0

Graves, lf 2 0 1 0 Hackett, 1b 2 2 3

Creighton, 1b 1 0 0 0 Batchelder, 1b 1 0

B. Hopkins, rf 2 0 0 0 Gallant, lf 3 0

Johndro, ss-3b 2 0 0 0 Shepley, lf 0 0

Edwards, ss 2 1 2 2

Walton, 3b 2 1 1 0

Leeman, 3b 1 0 0 0

Barron, cf 2 2 2 1

Crews, cf 1 0 0 0

Jones, 2b 2 2 2 2

Boehmer, 2b 1 1 1 0

Totals 18 0 3 0 Totals 26 14 14 11

Nokomis 000 00 – 0

Bangor 337 1x -14

E-Graves, Boillard 3; LOB-Nokomis 5, Bangor 5; 2B-Osborne; Edwards, Walton, Barron, Jones; SF-Hackett, Vanidestine, Cox; SB-Vanidestine, Barron

Nokomis IP H R ER BB SO

Boillard (L) 2 10 9 9 0 1

Harding 2 4 5 2 0 0

Bangor IP H R ER BB SO

Cox (W) 5 3 0 0 1 9

HBP-R. Hopkins (by Cox); Estabrook (by Boillard), Edwards (by Harding); WP-Boillard 2; T-1:16; ATT-150 (est.)