BREWER – The Calais softball team demonstrated tremendous enthusiasm Tuesday night, chanting incessantly from the outset during their Eastern Maine Class C championship game.

The second-seeded Blue Devils took advantage of their carefree approach, scoring four runs in the first inning then holding on for a 6-5 victory over top seed and defending EM champion Sumner of East Sullivan to win the regional title at Coffin Field.

“We were all positive and we just had a great attitude all game,” said sophomore Nicole Osborne, who led Calais with two singles, including a two-run hit in their four-run first. “We were chanting and stuff, so it really brought up our spirit.”

Coach Greg Smith’s Blue Devils (16-3), who had lost to the Tigers (15-4) in the playoffs each of the last three years, finally broke Sumner’s grip on the postseason rivalry.

Calais plays Western Maine champion Georges Valley of Thomaston (18-0) in Saturday’s 11 a.m. state game at Saint Joseph’s College in Standish.

Sumner winds up 15-4.

The Blue Devils didn’t appear to feel any pressure, despite heading into the contest with no seniors on the roster. They got to Sumner ace Tashia Daley (11-4) early, aided by three first-inning errors.

“I told them at the beginning of the playoffs: ‘no expectations. We don’t have any seniors. This is the year you do it, because there’s no pressure.’ They did great.”

It was the Tigers who seemed a bit jittery. They committed five errors, four in the first two innings.

Once in front, Calais pitcher Tessa Clark shrugged off a pair of two-run home runs by the Tigers and, with help from her defense, made sure the Blue Devils kept the lead. The junior spaced nine hits, striking out five and walking one.

“We got them down early, so they had to come back and try to catch up with us,” Clark said. “We just kept hitting and playing good defense and they just couldn’t.”

Daley got better as the game progressed, but the Tigers couldn’t come up with enough clutch hits. The sophomore allowed only five hits and one earned run, struck out six and walked three.

She retired 14 of the last 15 batters she faced, including 11 in a row during one stretch.

Calais had a runner at first with two out in the first when Sumner made consecutive infield errors. Osborne grounded a two-run single through the middle and a third run scored on another error. Shannon Brown roped an RBI double to right-center.

Sumner coach Elwood “Bimbo” Pinkham said his team appeared nervous, especially in the first inning.

“I told them before the game, if we can keep our errors down to a couple, we’ll have a very good chance of winning,” he said. “When you make that many errors, you’ve got to hit that much better.”

Lona Sargent’s homer in the first pulled the Tigers within 4-2, but Calais scored runs in the second and third. Sumner cut it to 6-4 in the third on Morgan Traxler’s blast but managed only one run after that.

A key play in the third was Daley’s one-out double to right-center. She overran second and got caught in a rundown that eventually erased Julia Johnson at the plate. Clark struck out Sargent to end the inning.

Calais’ three playoff wins came by a combined four runs.

“We had the early leads, they’d make a run, we’d weather the storm and win by one or two,” Smith said.

Honor Wilkinson stroked a run-scoring single in the second for Calais.

Daley hit another double for and Ashley Pennartz singled twice for the Tigers.

pwarner@bangordailynews.net

990-8240

BLUE DEVILS 6, TIGERS 5

Calais (16-3) Sumner (15-4)

Player AB R H BI Player AB R H BI

Hill, 2b 3 0 0 0 Daley, p 4 1 0

McVicar, c 2 1 1 0 Sargent, ss 4 1 2

Marshall, cr 0 1 0 0 Higgins, c 4 1 0

Clark, p 2 0 0 0 Traxler, 1b 3 1 2

Ross, pr 0 0 0 0 Delosa, pr 0 0 0

Wilkinson, c 4 1 1 1 Leach, 3b 3 0 0

Cole, 3b 4 1 0 0 Alexander, rf 3 0 0

Osborne, 1b 3 2 2 2 Pennartz, 2b 3 1 0

Brown, lf 3 0 1 1 Tucker, dp 3 0 0

Remington, rf 2 0 0 0 Whitten, lf 0 0

Ross, rf 1 0 0 0 Johnson, cf 2 0 0

Gillespie, cf 3 0 0 0 Lockhart, ph 1 0

Totals 27 6 5 4 Totals 30 5 9 4

Calais 411 000 0 – 6

Sumner 202 100 0 – 5

E-Gillespie, Hill, McVicar; Pennartz, Sargent 2, Johnson, Daley; LOB-Calais 5, Sumner 6; 2B-Brown; Daley 2, Higgins; HR-Sargent, Traxler; S-Clark

Calais IP H R ER BB SO

Clark (W,14-1) 7 9 5 4 1 5

Sumner IP H R ER BB SO

Daley (L, 11-4) 7 5 6 1 3 6

WP-Clark; Daley 2; T-1:33; ATT-350 (est.)