TOGUS – Steve Coombs didn’t want his American Legion career to end so soon.

So he did something about it.

Coombs of Kingman fired a sparkling five-hitter and had two doubles in a decisive seven-run seventh inning rally to lead Old Town-Orono to an 8-2 State Tournament win over Nova Seafood of Portland here Monday afternoon.

Old Town-Orono’s come-from-behind win sets up a noon championship game between the Twins and Nova Seafood on Tuesday.

Old Town-Orono is now 23-6 overall and 4-1 in the tourney. Nova Seafood, which had its 15-game winning streak snapped, is 24-10 and 4-1.

The hard-throwing Coombs went the distance for his eighth win in nine decisions, striking out nine and walking six. He threw 82 strikes among his 139 pitches.

“He had a real good fastball and he made us swing at his pitches,” said Nova first baseman Chris Portas.

“He was among the top three in the state, velocity-wise, that I’ve faced,” said Nova center fielder and leadoff hitter Mat Huff, who struck out three times. “He blew the heat by me. He also had a pretty good curve, but he couldn’t get it over.”

“I was hitting the corners pretty well with my fastball,” said Coombs, who was pitching on three days rest. “This was my best game of the year. I got stronger as the game went along.”

“He always seems to get stronger. I don’t know why,” said catcher Ron Coombs, Steve’s younger brother.

His counterpart, Nova righthander Rob Burrill, was matching Coombs pitch for pitch and took a 2-1 lead into the seventh after retiring 18 of the last 19 hitters. He was working on a one-hitter as David Theriault had opened the game with a homer to center.

But Coombs triggered the rally by ripping a ground rule double over center fielder Huff’s head.

“That was the most important hit of the game,” said Ron Coombs. “That gave us some life.”

One out later, Nick Chaisson lined an opposite-field single into right to score Coombs with the tying run.

Jay Vetelino walked and Aaron Knowles reached on an infield single when Vetelino beat the throw from shortstop Chris Fontaine, who backhanded the ball in the hole, to second baseman Tracy Gooding.

Ron Coombs then gave the Twins the lead for good by bouncing a sharp two-run single down the third base line. Knowles also scored on the play when the throw from left fielder Sandy Bassett skipped under the fence behind the plate for an error.

“I struck out in a similar situation before in the tournament, so I choked up a little and just tried to put the ball in play. I knew if I got it out of the infield, we’d get a run,” said Ron Coombs.

Mark Halsted chased Burrill with a line drive single to center that scored Ron Coombs.

Huff relieved Burrill and uncorked a wild pitch before walking Theriault.

One out later, Steve Coombs capped the rally by rifling a two-run double to right center.

“We’ve always been able to score a lot of runs. It was just a matter of time,” said Steve Coombs.

“I was getting the ball up in the seventh inning and they got to me,” said Burrill. “They’re a real good hitting team.”

After Theriault’s homer had staked the Twins to a 1-0 lead, Nick Caiazzo tied it for Nova Seafood with a third-inning homer to right.

Right fielder Knowles had prevented a potential two-run homer by Ian Gibb in the first by reaching over the fence to rob him.

Nova Seafood took the lead without the benefit of a hit in the fifth inning when speedster Huff walked, stole second and third, and scored on Bassett’s slow infield roller to third.

After Coombs allowed back-to-back two-out singles to Chris Fontaine and Burrill in the sixth inning, he retired the next nine hitters until pinch-hitter Sean Hadley reached on a two-out infield single in the ninth.

Shawn Milliken followed with a double, but Coombs got Huff on a called third strike to end the game.

Steve Coombs was the game’s only repeat hitter with his two doubles.

On Tuesday, Old Town-Orono will be gunning for its first state Legion title since 1978 while Nova Seafood will be looking for its first championship since 1984. The 1984 team was the Caldwell Post then.

Righthander Mark Thibodeau, who is 7-0 including a 10-7 win over Gardiner in the tournament, will pitch for Old Town-Orono. Nova Seafood Coach Jim McCartney said he wasn’t sure who he will pitch, although righties Fontaine (4-2) and Caiazzo (4-3, including complete-game 10-4 win over Old Town-Orono in the tournament) are the primary candidates.

OT-Orono 8, Nova Seafood 2 (Second Game)

Old Town-Orono Nova Seafood

Name ab r h bi Name ab r h bi

Theriault, cf 4 2 1 1 Huff, cf-p 4 1 0 0

Eastman, ss 4 0 0 0 Bassett, lf 4 0 0 1

S.Coombs, p 4 1 2 2 Caiazzo, rf 3 1 1 1

Evans, 3b 4 0 0 0 Gibb, 3b 4 0 0 0

Chaisson, 1b 3 1 1 1 Portas, 1b 4 0 0 0

Vetelino, lf 2 1 0 0 Fontaine, ss 4 0 1 0

Knowles, rf 4 1 1 1 Burrill, p-cf 3 0 1 0

R.Coombs, c 4 1 1 2 Gooding, 2b 2 0 0 0

Halsted, 2b 3 1 1 1 a-Hadley 1 0 1 0

Milliken, c 3 0 1 0

Totals 32 8 7 8 Totals 32 2 5 2

a-singled for Gooding in ninth

Old Town-Orono 100 000 700 – 8

Nova Seafood 001 010 000 – 2

E – Bassett 2B – S. Coombs 2; Milliken HR – Theriault (4); Caiazzo (5) LOB -OT-Orono 3; Nova 8 DP – Milliken to Fontaine, Goding to Fontaine to Portas SB – Huff 2, Burrill

Pitching Summary

PITCHER IP H R BB SO

Old Town-Orono

S.Coombs (W,8-1) 9 5 2 6 9

Nova Seafood

Burrill (L,7-1) 6 1/3 7 7 2 4

Huff 2 2/3 1 1 2 1

TIME -2:08

Nova 16, Gardiner 9

(Monday’s second game) Gardiner 000 134 100 – 9 11 4 Nova Seafood 543 100 03x – 16 18 1

O’Connor, McLaughlin (3) and Skehan, Monteith (5); Fullerton, Watson (6), Huff (7) and Milliken, Webb (4)