Searsport scores early, nips Orono Vikings ace Nate Adams outduels Red Riots’ Max Winter in ‘C’ clash

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ORONO – The Searsport baseball team staked pitching ace Nate Adams to a 3-0 first-inning lead against Orono on Wednesday afternoon.

Turns out that was all the offensive support the Vikings mustered for their senior righthander – but it was also all Adams needed as Searsport held on to outlast the stubborn Red Riots 3-2 in a key Eastern Maine Class C matchup.

Adams struck out seven, issued one intentional walk and allowed six hits and no earned runs during an 81-pitch effort.

“He’s one of the best pitchers in the league, no question about it,” said Orono coach Don Joseph. “He doesn’t waste any time and he throws strikes.”

So efficient was Adams with his fastball that he went to a three-ball count on just one batter.

“I wasn’t really happy with my control today, curveball-wise,” said Adams, now 4-1 this spring. “But I was getting my fastball over with movement and my two-seam was pretty good, so I was happy with that.

“I was trying to start everyone off with a strike just to get ahead of everybody. That’s my approach, to try to get ahead and stay ahead.”

There was little opportunity for Adams to relax from that approach, because after walking three batters and allowing two hits to the first seven batters he faced, Orono lefthander Max Winter delivered an equally solid performance.

After Rocky Faunce’s two-run single in the top of the first gave Searsport a 3-0 lead, Winter shut out the reigning Eastern Maine champions on five hits over his final 6 1/3 innings.

“When that ball dropped into center field for that two-run single in the first, you could see Winters get mad and pick his game up,” said Searsport coach Dave Pepin, “and I knew from then we were in for a battle.”

Searsport and Orono entered the contest ranked second and third, respectively, in Eastern C, and after defeating the Red Riots via the 10-run rule early in the season the Vikings threatened to blow the rematch open at its outset.

Casey Ashey and Bob Wilson opened the game with walks as eight of Winter’s first 10 pitches missed the strike zone.

Tom Cameron then skied a double to deep center, but that only loaded the bases as the runners had to wait to see if the wind-aided blast might be caught.

A one-out groundout by Matt Bagley drove home Ashey and, after a walk to Evan Kingsbury, Searsport made it 3-0 when Faunce popped a single front of Orono center fielder Jon Doughty to drive home Ashey and Cameron.

The Red Riots (6-8) scored their runs in the third inning, with a single by Kirk Francis and two Searsport errors preceding a two-run single to right by Ben Perry.

Searsport (11-2) came up big defensively in the late innings, turning two double plays after Orono got the leadoff hitter aboard in both the fifth and sixth innings.

The first came on a line drive by Doughty right back to Adams as Orono attempted a hit-and-run in the fifth.

In the sixth, Ben Stout followed a single by Kash Keezer with a grounder to Searsport third baseman Josiah Brazier. He threw a strike to Cameron at second base, and Cameron made smooth relay throw to first to end that threat.

“Their infield made some big plays when they had to,” said Joseph. “You don’t get a lot of opportunities against Searsport, so you have to try and maximize them.”

eclark@bangordailynews.net

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VIKINGS 3, RED RIOTS 2

Searsport (11-2) Orono (6-8)

Player AB R H BI Player AB R H BI

Ashey, c 2 1 1 0 Francis, ss 4 1 0

Wilson, rf 3 1 0 0 Doughty, cf 4 1 0

Cameron, 2b 4 1 2 0 Winter, p 3 0 0

Adams, p 3 0 0 0 Perry, rf-c 2 0 2

Bagley, 1b 4 0 0 1 LeVasseur, c 1 0 0

Kingsbury, ss 1 0 1 0 Stoddard, rf 2 0

Faunce, cf 3 0 2 2 Keezer, 1b 3 0 0

Pedrick, dh 3 0 1 0 Stout, 2b 3 0 0

Brazier, 3b 0 0 0 0 Cyr, 3b 3 0 0 0

Brassbridge, lf 3 0 0 0 Kilpatrick, lf 3 0

Totals 26 3 7 3 Totals 28 2 6 2

Searsport 300 000 0 – 3

Orono 002 000 0 – 2

E-Kingsbury 2, Faunce; LOB-Searsport 8, Orono 6; 2B-Cameron; Winter, LeVasseur; DP-Searsport 2

Searsport IP H R ER BB SO

Adams (W, 4-1) 7 6 2 0 1 7

Orono IP H R ER BB SO

Winter (L, 2-3) 7 7 3 3 6 9

WP-Winter; T-1:31; ATT-100 (est.)