LYNN– The Classical baseball team knew that Lincoln-Sudbury would bring its best effort to Thursday night’s Division 1 North first round game at Fraser Field. What the No. 8 Rams didn’t know was that one run was all it’d take for the No. 9 Warriors to end Classical’s season.
Lincoln-Sudbury took advantage of a Classical fielding error in the top of the first inning to score the game’s lone run in a 1-0 Warriors win over the Rams. With the win, Lincoln-Sudbury punched its ticket to Tuesday’s (4) quarter final at No. 1 Boston Latin.
“It’s a teaching moment,” Classical coach Mike Zukowski said, “but it’s tough to teach at this moment when you’re saying your goodbyes and guys are crying in the dugout. The state tournament’s a different atmosphere and teams play to a different level. Tonight it was that one play. That was the game.”
David Barnard took the mound for the Rams and put together a stellar performance. The junior right-hander tossed seven strong innings, allowed no earned runs on seven hits and fanned two Warriors batters.
On the other hand, Lincoln-Sudbury starting pitcher Jacob Pullen also brought his A game Thursday. Pullen allowed just one hit, a Dayshon Anderson single, in his seven innings of work. He tallied six strikeouts and walked one Classical batter.
“I shook his (Pullen) hand at the end of the game,” Zukowski said. “He earned that one. He one-hit us. He kept a lot of our guys off-balance. He had that sweeping curve, slider that no one could really hit. Their defense made big plays behind him.”
Lincoln-Sudbury scored the lone run of the game in the top of the first. Will Fraser laced a one-out single and scored on an errant infield throw, giving the Warriors an early 1-0 lead.
From there, the game turned into a classic pitcher’s duel with both defenses making big plays along the way. The Warriors put a runner on base in each inning except the top of the fourth, Barnard’s lone 1-2-3 inning of the night. Despite the jams, Classical found a way to stay within one run.
“David pitched a great game for us,” Zukowski said. “He got out of some big jams. We had a pick-off play to get out of an inning. Kevin (Durant) and Sean (Devin) made huge diving plays in the outfield. They’re two seniors that we’re going to miss. The whole senior class, whether they were a role player, or a starter, brought so much to this program. I’m proud of them.”
Anderson (1-for-2) hit a two-out single in the third and Cesar Carrero drew a two-out walk in the fifth but Pullen escaped both threats.
“The adjustments needed to be made and we didn’t necessarily make them,” Zukowski said. “He (Pullen) limited the at-bats and that didn’t give us multiple at-bats to see him.”
Hoping to piece together a late rally in the bottom of the seventh, Classical sent the meat of its order up to the plate. Devin grounded out to Pullen, Barnard struck out and Aidan Dow hit a groundout to first base to end the game.
Classical ends its season at 11-10.
“We gutted it out all season,” Zukowski said. “We got to 11 wins. We never gave up, I’ll give them that. This team never gave up. We went from a 2-5 start to get into the tournament. They’re fighters and I’m proud of them.”
