Adams sparks Vikings Searsport blanks Livermore Falls

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STANDISH – Nate Adams had averaged just 13.1 pitches per inning in his previous pitching start for the Searsport baseball team.

The only problem was that he pitched 10 innings in that Eastern Maine Class C final, leaving some to wonder what would be left in his personal reservoir just three days after that 131-pitch marathon with a state championship at stake.

Not to worry, said Adams, who proceeded to go out and prove his point at Mahaney Diamond on Saturday with a three-hit shutout that propelled the Vikings past Livermore Falls 5-0 for their second state title in the last three years.

“I wanted this game so bad,” said the senior righthander. “I don’t think coach [Dave Pepin] could have said anything else. I was going to pitch this game.”

The senior righthander struck out seven, walked no one and hit a batter while outdueling Livermore Falls sophomore Willie Brown, who allowed just three hits and two earned runs in 5 2/3 innings.

“We were hoping he’d break down as the game went on,” said Livermore Falls coach Brian Dube, “but just like the other day he got stronger as the game went on. He was throwing well, he kept the ball away and we couldn’t turn on it.”

Adams threw just 78 pitches, 54 for strikes, and of Livermore Falls’ three hits, only one went into the outfield.

“I threw the fastball 90 percent of the time today,” Adams said. “I’d never seen these guys before, and they’d never seen me, so I just wanted to go right after them, pound the strike zone and keep the pitch count low.”

When Livermore Falls did make contact, the Andies’ propensity for chasing high fastballs resulted in six popup or fly-ball outs.

“Nate had great stuff,” said senior catcher Casey Ashey. “We figured out that they were kind of undisciplined at the plate so we pounded the fastballs high and they bit on them. He just overpowered them, really. He threw strikes and it worked for us.”

Livermore Falls (16-4) never advanced a runner beyond second base in the game, and had only one runner get that far when Chandler White led off the bottom of the third inning with an infield hit and was sacrificed to second by Caleb Baron.

But that threat ended when Adams struck out Ryan Jackson and Ashey threw out White attempting to steal third base – Searsport’s second double play of the game.

“There was no decision about who the ball was going to today,” said Pepin. “We were going to win or lose with Nate, and I can’t say enough about him. He was totally in control of the game.”

Searsport (17-3) wasn’t an offensive juggernaut against Brown, either, but was patient enough at the plate to draw eight walks.

And then there was an encore performance of the small ball that was critical to the Vikings’ 6-2, 11-inning victory over George Stevens Academy of Blue Hill in the Eastern Maine final.

Evan Kingsbury and Bob Wilson opened the second inning with back-to-back singles and advanced to third and second on a two-strike sacrifice by Rocky Faunce.

Kingsbury scored on a balk by Brown, and after Ethan McHatten walked, No. 9 hitter Josh Pedrick put down a perfect suicide squeeze that enabled Wilson to score the second run of the inning.

“I got the sign from coach and I knew I had to get it down because every run was going to mean a lot,” said Pedrick. “We’ve worked on it and worked on it all season, and that first-base line was open and I was able to get it down.”

Those two runs were more than enough for Adams, whose fastball gained velocity as the game went on and was clocked between 82 and 84 mph in the later innings.

“I knew one run would have been enough with the way Nathan was pitching,” said senior shortstop Tom Cameron, “and we had good defense and people willing to lay their bodies out to make plays.”

The Vikings added three unearned runs in the sixth thanks to two Livermore Falls errors and three walks. Matt Bagley reached on an infield error and was sacrificed to second by Kingsbury. Brown then issued two-out walks to Faunce and McHatten to load the bases before a throwing error on a grounder by Pedrick allowed pinch-runner Dustin Brassbridge and Faunce to score to make it 4-0.

After Adams walked, Ashey hit an infield single off shortstop Jake Marceau’s glove to drive home McHatten.

“Three unearned runs pretty much took away any chance of us moving people along,” said Dube. “Our strength’s been hitting the ball all year and [Adams] shut us down. He pitched well and we didn’t make the plays today, either. Both teams got three hits, but what stands out are the three errors we put up there.”

eclark@bangordailynews.net

990-8045

VIKINGS 5, ANDIES 0

Searsport (17-3) Livermore Falls (16-4)

Player AB R H BI Player AB R H BI

Adams, p 3 0 0 0 Gats, cf 3 0 0

Ashey, c 1 0 1 1 Brown, p-c 3 0 0

Cameron, ss 4 0 0 0 Marceau, c-ss 3 0 0

Bagley, 1b 4 0 0 0 Tainter, 1b 3 0 0

Brassbridge, pr 0 1 0 0 Keene, ss-3b 2 0

Kingsbury, cf 2 1 1 0 Stebbins, 2b 3 0

Wilson, rf 4 1 1 0 White, lf 3 0 0

Faunce, lf 1 1 0 0 Baron, rf 1 0 0

McHatten, 2b 1 1 0 0 Jackson, 3b 1 0 0

Pedrick, dh 2 0 0 1 Castonguay, p 1 0 0

Brazier, 3b 0 0 0 0

Totals 22 5 3 2 Totals 23 0 3 0

Searsport 020 003 0 – 5

Livermore Falls 000 000 0 – 0

E-Brazier, Cameron; Brown; Keene 2; LOB-Searsport 7, Livermore Falls 4; DP-Searsport 2; S-Wilson, Pedrick, Kingsbury; Baron; SB-Ashey

Searsport IP H R ER BB SO

Adams (W, 7-1) 7 3 0 0 0 7

Livermore Falls IP H R ER BB SO

Brown (L, 3-1) 5 2/3 2 5 2 7 4

Castonguay 1 1/3 1 0 0 1 0

HBP-Keene (by Adams); BK-Brown; T-1:48; ATT-600 (est.)