Peabody West roars back, defeats Shore

NAHANT – It was a tale of two games on Wednesday in a District 16 winner?s bracket semifinal between Lynn Shore and Peabody West.For the first three innings, Lynn Shore and its starting pitcher, Max Gieg, had things all to themselves as they led 7-0. Then, like a tidal wave from the nearby Atlantic, the squad that had won district titles as 10 and 11?s flashed its big-game experience.Peabody West turned a 7-0 deficit into a 17-7, five-inning victory in the blink of an eye as it scored 13 times in the top of the fourth and added four runs in the fifth to earn a date with Wyoma on Sunday (5) for a spot in the district final.?I was really proud to see how we fought back,” Peabody West manager Ed Silva said. “Everything in baseball is contagious and once the kids saw the first couple get on, they were running up to the plate for their chance.”Across the diamond, Lynn Shore manager Mark Sullivan could only shake his head in amazement at the way things changed in the blink of an eye.?That?s what can happen against a team like Peabody,” Sullivan said. “They are a very good team and they don?t give up. We could feel it in the dugout once they started getting the runs. We couldn?t get the out to stop them.”From the way things started, it felt more like one run could be all either team needed instead of the gunfight that ensued as Gieg and West starter Joe Gilmartin both breezed through the first inning. Gieg worked another 1-2-3 frame in the second before his mates brought the lumber in the bottom of the inning.Gilmartin struck out the first batter before Wando Perez singled to center to get Shore going. An error on Francesco DeLeon?s grounder to first scored Perez with the game?s first run. Antonio Smith followed with a walk before a wild pitch scored DeLeon.An error allowed Jeremiah Brito to reach before Gilmartin struck out David Stepan for the second out. Jomar Moreta?s infield single scored Smith and kept the inning going.Shortstop Andy Duverge took advantage as he rocked a three run homer to left to give Shore a 6-0 lead after two.Gieg made it nine straight Peabody hitters retired in the top of the third and when DeLeon scored on Duverge?s two-out single that made it 7-0, it looked like Shore was on its way.?That?s the best that I?ve seen Max pitch in four years,” Sullivan said. “He was on cruise control.”The top of the fourth would change the game for good.John Mulready walked to lead things off. Gilmartin then reached on an error, with a passed ball moving both runners up 60 feet. Another passed ball scored Mulready before J.C. Espinal singled to center, plating Gilmartin.Angelo McCullough, who had replaced Gilmartin on the mound in the third, walked in front of Jenarro Herbert, who singled to score both Gilmartin and Espinal to make it 7-4.Pinch hitter Mike Sabella walked before all runners were safe on a Mike Silva fielder?s choice that loaded the bases. Gieg struck out the next batter and had No. 9 hitter Jake Murphy down 0-2 before he punched a curveball into right field for a single that scored Espinal.Mulready followed with a two-run single that tied the game at 7-7. Gilmartin then gave Peabody the lead for good when he chopped a single to left, scoring Murphy and Mulready.Espinal then blasted a two-run homer to center, upping the lead to 11-7. After a McCullough walk and a strikeout, Sabella lofted another two-run dinger just over the right-center fence to cap the 13-run outburst.McCullough then did his job on the mound, working a fast bottom of the fourth to get his hot offense right back to the plate.West moved in for the kill when Murphy reached on an error before walks to Mulready and Espinal loaded the bases. McCullough cleared them with a triple to right before he scored on a passed ball to give Peabody a 17-7 lead.Three McCullough strikeouts in the bottom of the fifth locked up victory for West.?Angelo is the heart and soul of this team. He has been for the last three years,” Silva said. “You can?t measure heart o