Saugus edges Lynn to win District 1 title

LYNN – Robert Shields picked a runner off first to end the game as Saugus? 15-year-olds claimed the District 1 Babe Ruth title, 3-2, over Lynn Thursday at the Bowser Complex.
Both teams will move onto the state tournament in Saugus starting next week.
Saugus jumped out to an early lead as Vincent Coppola reach on a leadoff walk and swiped second base. Nick Dascoli drove him in with a double. Dascoli was also responsible for Saugus? second run in the third inning, as he doubled after Coppola singled.
Lynn knotted things up in the fourth. David Hunter singled and moved to third when Tommy Cash reached on an error. Josh Mateo?s sacrifice fly to right plated the first run, and a groundout by Kyle Bernardini brought home Cash.
The tie didn?t last long. In the bottom of the fourth. Saugus? Danny McCullough was hit by a pitch with one out, moved to third on Paul Stamatopoulos?s single, and scored when Jack O?Brien reached on a fielder?s choice. Lynn starter Cash was able to escape any further damage in the inning, getting the dangerous Dascoli to fly out to left.
The Lynn squad stranded two in the sixth, and Shields picked off what represented the tying run in the seventh.
Saugus starter Darion Correia limited Lynn to two hits over six innings and allowed three walks.
?He spotted his pitches well,” said Saugus manager Mike Mabee. “He?s a great competitor.”
Perhaps the play of the game was one that ended the fifth inning. With a runner on third for Lynn, Briston Maynard lined a shot to center field. Coppola laid out and made a diving catch, taking extra bases away from Maynard and ending the inning, keeping Saugus on top.
?(Coppola) is an phenomenal athlete,” said Mabee. “When I saw that catch, I immediately thought it belonged in the SportsCenter Top 10. That was a full-body layout.”
For Lynn, Cash pitched well enough to keep his team in the game, allowing five hits over six innings and issuing two walks. He fanned five and hit a batter.
?(Cash) pitched an extraordinary game,” said Lynn manager Pete Dawson. “He definitely could have won this game. They just got some timely hits and they had that incredible catch in center field. But we didn?t beat ourselves. We played excellent defense.”
Saugus and Lynn are no strangers to each other, and it was a battle down to the very last play for both teams. They hope to see each other again once the state tournament gets rolling.
?They?re a great team,” Mabee said of the Lynn group. “We?ve had a lot of good battles against them and have a little bit of a rivalry going on.”
?We?ve had a lot of tight games against Saugus, we?re very evenly matched teams,” said Dawson.Katie Morrison can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter at @KatieMo61.