SWAMPSCOTT — After batting through a back-and-forth game and rallying back from behind twice, the Peabody baseball team scored four runs in the top of the eighth to take down Swampscott in extra innings in a Northeastern Conference bout at Forest Avenue Park Saturday afternoon.
Jacob Palhares led the offensive attack for Peabody, going 3-for-5 with three RBI and two runs scored. Mike Krouse went 3-for-5 with one RBI and two stolen bases, while Justin Powers went 2-for-4 with one RBI and one run scored. Joe Raymond also added one RBI in the win, while Ryan Brunet (2-for-4) had a multi-hit game. On the defensive end, center fielder Sam Oliveri made five key putouts to help keep the Tanners ahead.
Branden Waite earned the win on the mound for the Tanners after tossing six innings of relief, allowing only one hit while striking out three.
On the Swampscott side of things, John Cuttle picked up the only two hits for the Big Blue and also notched one RBI.
Cuttle also got the start and went 6 1/3 innings, allowing four runs (two earned). Cam O’Brien pitched the final 1 2/3 innings and also allowed two earned runs to take the loss on the mound.
Things got off to a bit of a shaky start for Peabody, as Raymond — who got the start for the Tanners — struggled to throw strikes early. After the Big Blue got runners into scoring position in the bottom of the first, a balk and an RBI groundout gave Swampscott a 2-0 lead.
Peabody answered and tied it at 2-2 in the top of the second thanks largely to Powers, who knocked an RBI single and then scored when the throw got away on his steal of third base.
Cuttle put the Big Blue back out in front with an RBI single in the bottom of the second, then Swampscott added another run in the bottom of the third to take a 4-2 lead.
The Tanners chipped away at the deficit in the top of the fifth, as Oliveri and Krouse both notched hits before Raymond brought a run home on an RBI groundout. After Krouse smacked an RBI single in the top of the sixth, the score was tied at 4-4.
Both teams had chances with runners in scoring position in the seventh inning, but nothing came to fruition until the top of the eighth. The Tanners moved runners to second and third with two outs before Swampscott intentionally walked Peabody cleanup hitter Brendan Smith. But they set the stage for Palhares, who stepped into the box and smashed a bases-clearing double to put the Tanners up 7-4. He later came around to score when a throw to third got away, rounding out the big inning for the Tanners.
Swampscott (3-1) is now off until Thursday (4) when it plays on the road at Lynn Classical.
Peabody (3-1) is back in action Monday morning (10) on the road at Danvers.
