Freeman lifts Bucks past John Bapst Bucksport to battle Winslow in EM final

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BUCKSPORT – Bucksport High School senior right fielder-pitcher Todd Freeman did everything but sell concessions at Saturday’s Eastern Maine Class B baseball semifinal against John Bapst of Bangor.

Freeman pitched 2 1/3 innings of two-hit shutout relief to earn his third win in as many decisions and he broke a 5-5 tie with a three-run homer in the sixth inning as the Golden Bucks rallied past the Crusaders 8-7.

Freeman also had a sacrifice fly.

The top-seeded Bucks, 16-2, will face No. 2 Winslow, 15-3, in Tuesday’s 3 p.m. Eastern Maine B championship game at Mansfield Stadium in Bangor.

No. 5 John Bapst finished 10-8.

Bucksport trailed 3-0, 4-3 and 5-4 before Freeman gave the Bucks their first lead with his opposite-field homer to right center off reliever Kyle Gallant.

Chris Maguire had walked to start the decisive rally and Cam Wadleigh followed with his third hit of the game, a line- drive single to left center that sent Maguire to third.

Freeman launched a 1-0 fastball for his fifth homer of the season.

“I was looking for a fastball and he threw me a fastball right down the middle on the outside part of the plate. I was just hoping to drive in the run but it ended being a home run,” said Freeman. “I knew it was gone when I hit it. It felt really good.”

Gallant said Freeman did a “good piece of hitting.

“It was a low, outside fastball and he did pretty well to go and get it,” said Gallant.

But the Crusaders weren’t done, either.

Bucksport ace Maguire came on to start the seventh and Gallant greeted him with an infield single.

Nick Hubbard drew a one-out walk and Nick Smith’s line- drive single loaded the bases.

Two runs scored when a throwing error was committed on the relay to first on Alex Yates’ RBI fielder’s choice to third. Yates went to second.

But Maguire struck out Brock Bradford to end it.

John Bapst took a 3-0 lead in the first inning on Jon Gagnon’s towering three-run homer to right center, his first homer of the year.

But the Bucks tied it with three unearned runs in the bottom of the first on a hit batsman, an infield error, Wadleigh’s bloop RBI single to center, Freeman’s sacrifice fly, a walk and Steve Klenowski’s sinking line-drive single to center.

“When we came right back after they scored their three runs, that gave us confidence in ourselves,” said Maguire.

Yates drilled his first homer of the season to open the second but Bucksport answered when Matt Jackson singled and eventually scored on an errant outfield throw to the relay man.

Singles by Hubbard and Nick Smith and a two-out walk in the fourth chased Cook in favor of Freeman and Freeman uncorked a run-producing wild pitch.

But the Bucks again tied it up on a walk and Wadleigh’s hit-and-run opposite-field line- drive double inside the right field line.

“Every time we got behind, we answered. That was important. We have eight seniors and they don’t panic,” said Bucks coach Tiger Stewart.

Freeman pitched out of a second-and-third, one-out jam in the fifth.

“He’s come through a lot this year. He has definitely been a clutch player,” said Wadleigh.

Maguire called Bapst a “very good team. This was one of the toughest games we’ve played in a while.”

Wadleigh led Bucksport with his three hits while Gagnon and Nick Smith had two hits each for John Bapst.

GOLDEN BUCKS 8, CRUSADERS 7

John Bapst (10-8) Bucksport (16-2)

Player AB R H BI Player AB R H BI

Hull, cf-ss 2 1 0 0 Jackson, ss 4 1 0

Healey, 1b-rf 2 1 0 0 Robbins, cf 2 0

Pooler, ph 1 0 0 0 Maguire, 2b-3b-p 2 0

Gallant, ss-p 2 1 1 0 Wadleigh, c 3 2

J. Gagnon, rf-lf 4 1 2 3 Wood, pr 0 0

Hubbard, p-3b 2 1 1 0 Freeman, rf-p 3 4

M. Gagnon, pr 0 1 0 0 Dedmon, lf 3 0

N. Smith, c 4 0 2 0 Klenowski, dh 4 0 1

Yates, 3b-1b 4 1 1 2 Bisher, 1b 0 0 0

Huckestein, pr 0 0 0 0 Fish, 3b-rf 2 0

Bragdon, dh 3 0 0 0 Cooke, lf-2b 2 0 0

King, 2b 0 0 0 0

C. Smith 2 0 1 0

Totals 26 7 8 5 Totals 25 8 8 7

John Bapst 310 100 2 – 7

Bucksport 310 103 x – 8

E- Yates, J. Gagnon; Cooke; LOB- JB 8, Bucksport 8; 2B- Wadleigh; HR- J. Gagnon (1), Yates (1); Freeman (5); S- Gallant, Hubbard; SF- Freeman; SB- Robbins, Wood

John Bapst IP H R ER BB SO

Hubbard 2 2/3 5 4 0 2 0

Gallant (L, 1-2) 3 1/3 3 4 4 3 4

Bucksport IP H R ER BB SO

Cooke 3 2/3 4 5 5 3 3

Freeman (W, 3-0) 2 1/3 2 0 0 2 1

Maguire (S-1) 1 2 2 1 1 2

HBP- Healey (by Cooke); Robbins (by Hubbard), Fish (by Hubbard); WP- Hubbard; Freeman; T- 2:05; ATT- 150 (est.)