The St. Mary?s baseball team got a big effort from Matt Costanza at the most opportune of times on Monday as his single in the bottom of the 10thinning scored Donnie Weisse to give the Spartans a 3-2 win over Cardinal Spellman at Fraser Field.
The victory puts St. Mary?s (10-2, 8-2 Catholic Central League/Large) squarely in control of its league title hopes.
?We battled all day and were able to take advantage of being the home team,” St. Mary?s coach Derek Dana said. “The kids never panicked and it was nice to win a game like this.”
The Spartans trailed most of the day against Spellman?s Chris Diver until Clay Yianacopolus? two-out, two-run triple scored Costanza and Brendan O?Neill to tie the game in the sixth.
O?Neill went the first eight innings for St. Mary?s, allowing two earned runs on five hits with five strikeouts. Costanza took over in the ninth and worked two scoreless innings.
Diver was still on the hill for the Cardinals in the 10thwhen Weisse led off with a walk. Following a sacrifice, Costanza picked up his third hit of the day to score the winning run.
Lynn Classical 8, Beverly 0
The Rams (10-3, 8-3 NEC/North) clinched a state tournament berth as Herbie Newton shut down the Panthers (8-5, 7-4), allowing two hits in six innings. Andre Gaudet drove in three runs while Matt Lauria had two hits, two RBIs and two stolen bases.
Joe Tardiff had two hits and one RBI. Tyler Way ( two hits, two stolen bases, two runs) also contributed for Classical.
?Herbie went out and threw well and we got some guys up in situations and they did the job at the plate,” Rams coach Mike Zukowski said.
Lynn English 6, Peabody 5
The Bulldogs (9-4, 8-3 NEC/North) used a gritty effort from Lucas Harris on the mound and timely hitting to create a three-way tie for first in the league standings with the Tanners (11-3, 8-3) and Classical. Harris went the distance, allowing eight hits and four earned runs but came up with big pitches when he needed them.
?Lucas is such a fierce competitor. Every time we put the ball in his hand, we have a chance to win,” English coach Joe Caponigro said.
Jeam Castillo drove in three runs for English, which used a four-run third inning to take the lead for good. Peabody got two hits and two RBIs from both Mike Petrosino and Nick Palma.
Swampscott 8, Winthrop 0
Gavin Sullivan went the distance, scattering five hits and striking out six, as the Big Blue (9-3) kept pace in the NEC/South standings. Adrian Espinal was 2-for-3 with two RBIs and two runs scored. Greg Collier had two hits and one RBI while Ryan Cresta ripped a two-run double.
St. John?s Prep 6, Catholic Memorial 4 (9 innings)
Teddy McNamara belted a two-run, walk-off homer to give the Eagles (11-2) the outright Catholic Conference title. Nick Latham, who homered earlier in the game, was hit by a pitch to set the table for McNamara?s dramatics.
Dan Rose homered for the Eagles in the bottom of the seventh to tie the game, 4-4. Justin Foley got the win in relief, working 5 2/3 innings improving to 6-0 this season.
Revere 6, Salem 5
Pinch runner Brian Munoz beat a throw to the plate on a John DeSimone grounder in the bottom of the seventh to give the Patriots (4-8) a walk-off win. Noah Jaynes picked up the win, striking out seven and walking two in a complete game.
Danvers 2, Saugus 1
The Falcons (10-3) broke a 1-1 tie on Ryan Buchanan?s RBI single in the fourth as the duo of Zach Dunn and Andrew Olszak combined on a three-hitter.
Saugus?s Kyle Autilio pitched well, allowing one earned run on four hits and striking out 11. Dan Cacciola and Luke Surette went 2-for-3, but the Sachems couldn?t get runners home.?We had excellent pitching and defense,” said Saugus coach Steve Freker. “We hit the ball hard at people all night. It was the best game we played all year.”
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