READFIELD — File this one under the “baseball’s a funny game” category.
Eleven days after Leavittt doubled up Maranacook by the slow-pitch softball score of 16-8, the Hornets were handcuffed by Black Bears senior Skylar Webb in Friday’s second half of the home-and-home series.
Webb held the Hornets hitless in every inning but the fourth, boosting the Black Bears to a 2-1 KVAC win that was impactful on both teams’ playoff hopes.
“It’s been a struggle,” said Webb, who allowed three hits, struck out three and walked two for his first victory of the season. “They backed me up (in the field), and I really appreciate that.”
Errors and a lack of timely hitting have cost Webb all season. He had ample support on this breezy afternoon, most notably from center fielder Nick Lacasse’s leather.
Lacasse dove toward right center to rob Josh Daigle and end the fourth inning, limiting Leavitt to one run and likely preventing two more. He also snared a sinking line drive off the bat of Nate Ouellette to start an inning-ending double play in the fifth.
Later, Matt Delmar stopped Webb’s offering in the dirt, then fired to Max McQuillen on Nate Coombs’ attempted steal of third to end the game.
“He’s our ace. He’s pitched games like that all year long. We’ve just had tough luck behind him,” Maranacook coach Eric Brown said. “We finally played some defense, and it made all the difference in the world. He should have won several games.”
Now 3-1 in games decided by a single run, Maranacook (5-5) at least temporarily jumped from 11th to sixth in the Class C West Heal Point standings.
Leavitt (3-6) lost all three of its games this week, including two one-run verdicts.
“I thought both teams made some crucial plays in the field and had some crucial outs at big times,” Leavitt coach Chris Cifelli said. “There were a couple of balls I thought we squared up, and on a given day those fall in.”
Levi Morin pitched into the sixth inning for Leavitt, scattering five hits, striking out four and walking four. Both runs were unearned. Mitchel Davis retired all three Maranacook batters he faced in relief.
The Black Bears and Hornets did all their scoring with two out.
In the Maranacook second, Kent Mohlar singled, stole second, went to third on a wild pitch and scored when Leavitt bobbled Kodey Solmitz’s ground ball.
“We finally got a little clutch with the lower end of our order,” Brown said. “We’ve been waiting for them to come through.”
Lacasse increased the toll with another single, and consecutive walks to Jason Brooks and Cam Brochu pushed across a second run.
Morin stranded seven Maranacook runners on base through three innings. He then retired eight consecutive Black Bears prior to the walk that ended his day.
“We’re very happy with Levi with how he battled,” Cifelli said. “It was his longest start of the season, and he kept us in it, and Mitchel held them there to give us a shot at 2-1 in the seventh.”
The Hornets were inches away from a huge fourth inning that would have made it a much different game.
Solmitz snared a line drive in right field and Delmar made a fallaway grab of a foul ball behind the plate before Morin broke up Webb’s bid for a perfect game with a sharp single to left.
Drew Gosselin and Davis also delivered base hits to put Leavitt on the board before Lacasse’s somersaulting grab in the gap.
“We’re a young, inexperienced team, so to get those plays finally is a nice plus for us, because we’ve had some issues with that,” Brown said.
Walks by Kevin Knight in the fifth and Daigle in the seventh were Leavitt’s only other damage against Webb. Maranacook erased a pinch runner in each case.
“That was a nice finish,” Webb said. “They were all on their game.”
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