Once Dirigo’s starting pitcher got to throwing freely and easily Thursday, Lisbon couldn’t hit him. And once Dirigo’s hitters started putting the ball in play against Lisbon ace Kyle Bourget, the Cougars had the Greyhounds right where they wanted them.

Arsenault retired the final 14 Lisbon batters and Dirigo took advantage of two costly Greyhounds errors to rally from a 2-0 deficit for a 3-2 win in both teams’ Mountain Valley Conference regular-season finales.

Through the first three innings, Arsenault allowed two runs — one earned — on five hits and a walk. After Dirigo’s only error of the day scored Lisbon’s second run with one out in the fourth inning, he allowed only one ball out of the infield while striking out three (five overall).

“I really wasn’t that warmed up in the beginning of the game,” Arsenault said. “I finally started getting warmed up and my fastball starts working, my change-up, my curve ball start working.”

“One thing with Gavin, he usually gets off to a slow start,” Dirigo coach Ryan Palmer said. “We try to get him into a routine of warming up before a game, throwing long toss, throwing hard with a catcher. Usually by the third or fourth inning, he’s ready to go.”

While Arsenault was getting loose, the Greyhounds (10-6) took advantage.

In the second, Noah Francis’ two-out single drove in Brett Gravel to make it 1-0. In the third, pinch-hitter Joe Philbrick hit a rope that tipped off the shortstop’s glove and into left field to plate R.J. Sargent with their second run.

“I think (Arsenault really turned around after we had the error at shortstop that scored Lisbon’s run,” Palmer said. “I think then he knew, ‘This game’s mine,’ because he definitely got stronger.”

Dirigo (13-3) put at least one runner on base in each of the first four innings, but Bourget (7 IP, 2 ER, 6 H, 12 Ks, 3 BB, one intentional) buckled down each time. He fanned two while allowing a Tyler single in the first, the side after surrendering a leadoff single by Nick Hall in the second, one after Lisbon put runners at first and third in the third, and the side again around an error in the fourth

“After either the second inning or the third inning, I said, ‘The defense doesn’t have to do a thing against strikeouts. And if you pop the ball up, anybody can catch a fly ball. Put the ball on the ground and make them make the plays,'” Palmer said.

It didn’t hurt that Bourget, who pitched 2/3 of an inning in relief the day before in Lisbon’s win over St. Dom’s, appeared to tire and started elevating his pitches in the fifth.

A single, walk and sacrifice fly put the tying runs in scoring position. Jack Brown’s sacrifice fly to left ended up scoring both runs, as the relay throw to third base to try to get Arsenault, the trail runner, skipped out of play.

“When they tied it up, you could see a little bit of a momentum swing there,” Lisbon coach Randy Ridley said. “”We tried to battle back but Gavin definitely stepped up his game and did exactly what he was supposed to do. Kyle pitched a great game, but we made a couple of tough plays in the field. Great teams overcome that, and great teams take advantage of that.”

Bourget got out of that inning and struck out three of the next four before walking Arsenault with one out in the seventh. With Arsenault breaking for second on the pitch, Frost grounded out to third. Arsenault didn’t stop on the throw across the diamond, however, and drew another bad throw to third that bounced out of play, sending him home with the go-ahead run.

“We had a hit-and-run going, so once I got to second, I saw no one was covering third. I just went and they made a bad throw to third,” Arsenault said.

The win clinches the Cougars’ fifth consecutive MVC championship game appearance. They will face Monmouth Academy next Wednesday at Thomas College. Time is to be announced.

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