Staff Writer
Katahdin High School’s Tom Anderson hit a walk-off sacrifice fly last Saturday to clinch an 11-10 victory over Deer Isle-Stonington.
BACK – Katahdin’s Kaleb Gallagher beats the throw over to first base during last Thursday’s quarterfinal game against Limestone. The Cougars will face SACS for the Class D title today.
Anderson stepped up to the plate in the final inning, after Deer Isle-Stonington intentionally walked the batter ahead of him to load the bases, knowing he just had to make contact with the ball. After a short battle with DI-Stonington pitcher Eben Powers, Anderson pulled a pitch into shallow left field, raising his hand in victory as he jogged to first base and watched his teammate cross home plate.
“I was pumped,” said Anderson. “I knew right off the bat that we won because we had a fast runner on third, and it was just over.”
The semifinal matchup had been a wild roller coaster ride even before the last inning comeback by the Cougars.
Katahdin took advantage of DI-Stonington’s errors in the second inning to pull ahead 2-0 early. After holding DI-Stonington scoreless for the third straight inning, Katahdin began to focus at the plate. Josh Guiggey put his team up 5-0 with a three-run triple in the bottom of the third, and it appeared that the Cougars had the game under control.
The momentum of the game shifted quickly, however, after DI-Stonington pulled out a combined eight runs in the fourth and fifth innings. This mid-game rally was accented by Collin Ciomei’s own three-run triple with two outs in the fifth inning.
Still, DI-Stonington’s momentum wouldn’t last long, as the home team pulled back with two runs in the sixth to make it an 8-7 ballgame.
In the final inning DI-Stonington hoped to put the game out of reach by adding another run to the scoreboard. Rather than losing composure, the Cougars rallied and quickly tied the game with an RBI-double by Evan McCarthy. An intentional walk by DI-Stonington then put Anderson in position to end the game with his sacrifice fly.
“We didn’t hit the ball real well early in the game, but I knew these guys had seen this pitcher two or three times already, so I figured they’d start,” said Katahdin coach Marty McCarthy.
The Cougars advance to play the No. 4-ranked Southern Aroostook Warriors for the Eastern Maine Class D title. The EM final will be held this afternoon at 3 p.m. at Mansfield Stadium in Bangor.
The Cougars reached the semifinal by eliminating Limestone/MSSM 13-3 in five innings in last Thursday’s Eastern Maine Class D quarterfinals in Stacyville.
The Cougars took a 7-0 lead in the bottom of the second, and things went from bad to worse for the struggling Eagles, as Katahdin erupted for 13 fourth-inning runs to break the game open. Limestone scored back-to-back runs in the top of the fourth and fifth.
Andy Kay led Katahdin with a double and single to drive in three runs, while Anderson tripled and knocked in three runs and Matt McAvoy belted a two-run double in Katahdin’s fourth-inning rally.
NEARLY CAUGHT – Katahdin’s Ethan Qualey dives back into first base, as he was nearly picked off by Limestone during last Thursday’s Class D quarterfinal game. The Cougars face Southern Aroostook today, weather permitting, for the regional title in Bangor at 3 p.m.
