PHOTO BY BOB ROCHE
Gloucester pitcher Zach Morris shut out Peabody for four innings and hit three homers, knocking in seven of his team’s 10 runs.
By STEVE KRAUSE
LYNN — Gloucester Little League pitcher Zach Morris had it all going on Saturday.
Not only did Morris take it to the Peabody Little Leaguers during his four innings of work, he bedeviled the opposition at the plate, too, hitting three home runs and knocking in seven of his team’s 10 runs in a 10-0 mercy-rule-shortened win in the Massachusetts Section 4 final.
“The boys were laser-focused today,” said Gloucester manager Jared Harwood. “This is a testimony to how focused they were.
“Zach is a great hitter,” Harwood said. “And today he gave a really, really fantastic performance.”
With the win, Gloucester advances to the state championship series, which will be played this year in North Reading. Besides Gloucester, the teams competing will be Holden, Milton National and Melrose.
Peabody went with Carson Browne to start the game, but as early as the first inning, it became evident that this would be tough day for the District 16 champion. Carson Harwood led off the game with a single, and advanced to second on an error. Emerson Marshall hit into a force play, and Jared Lucido followed with a double that put runners on second and third.
Morris was next, and he pulverized the ball well over the fence in right-center and Gloucester had a 3-0 lead.
Peabody tried to get something going in the bottom of the first, but Morris would have none of it. Neither team scored in the second, but Gloucester was back for more in the top of the third, this time with four runs to go up 7-0.
Lucido knocked in three of them with Gloucester’s second home run of the day, and Morris followed with a towering opposite-field homer to left. The only question was whether it would stay fair.
In the top of the fourth, after Harwood singled and Lucido doubled, Morris was back with homer No. 3.
It was then left to Morris in the bottom of the fourth to retire Peabody without a run to invoke the 10-run rule. Although Peabody put a runner on base, Morris erased him on a 4-6-3 double play.
“I think we ran out of gas today,” said Peabody manager Justin Powers. “And Gloucester … give them credit. That lineup can mash. And give that kid Morris a lot of credit. What a game he had.”
