Thanks to some clutch hitting and stellar pitching Thursday night, the No. 8 Peabody Champions punched their ticket to the North Shore Baseball League finals after taking down the No. 2 Rowley Nor’Easters, 6-2, in Game 5 of their NSBL semifinal series at Eiras Park in Rowley. The Champions will now take on the No. 3 Kingston Night Owls in the championship series.
Brayden Clark led the way offensively for Peabody, going 1-for-3 with two RBI in the win. Mark Shorey (1-for-3) also added one RBI, while Peter Messervy (1-for-3), Chris Mansour (1-for-2) and Andrew O’Neill (1-for-4) also added hits.
Tyler Leavitt earned the win on the mound for Peabody after pitching three scoreless innings with five strikeouts.
Shorey came through in the top of the first inning for Peabody, knocking a RBI single to put the Champions ahead 1-0. Shorey helped double the lead in the top of the third after scoring on a wild pitch.
Peabody enjoyed a four-run fourth inning thanks in part to a two-run single from Clark, extending its lead to as much as 6-0. Rowley fought back a bit in the bottom of the fourth with a two-run outburst, but the Champions were able to stifle the rally before things got out of hand.
Behind a two-run home run from Shorey (1-for-3) and a multi-hit, two-RBI performance from Clark (2-for-3), the Champions were able to force a winner-take-all Game 5 after beating the Nor’Easters, 5-2, in Game 4 of the NSBL semifinals Wednesday night.
Shorey hit his homer in the first inning and the Champions never looked back, holding onto the lead for the entire game. Jon Cahill (1-for-3), Derek Lyons (1-for-3), Mike Giardi (1-for-2) and Andrew O’Neill (1-for-2) also added hits in the victory.
Mike Muscarella earned the win on the mound for Peabody, tossing no-hit innings with three walks and one strikeout. Greg Ladd came in to pitch two innings of relief, allowing one run on three hits, then Sean Letarte came in and allowed one run on one hit without recording an out. Brian Marshall earned the save after pitching the final two innings without giving up a hit.
Elsewhere in the NSBL playoffs, the No. 5 Swampscott Sox were eliminated after falling to the No. 3 Kingston Night Owls by a score of 3-1 in Game 4 of their NSBL semifinal series.
Garret Roberts (1-for-4), Michael Pierro (1-for-2) and Kyle O’Neill (1-for-2) each had one RBI in the win for the Night Owls, while Sean Callahan earned the win on the mound. Callahan pitched a complete game, allowing one run on eight hits with 11 strikeouts.
The North Shore Baseball League finals between the Champions and the Night Owls will begin at a place and time to be determined.
