SWAMPSCOTT — The Swampscott Little League All-Stars defeated West Lynn, 3-1, at DHC Field in Swampscott Friday, eliminating them from the tournament.
When the game began, it looked like it was going to be a shootout as West Lynn’s Jackson Barrett reached third on a hit to right field after a throwing error. Then the next batter, Aiden Peterson, drove him in with a hard-hit grounder to second that was bobbled.
In the next half-inning, Swampscott responded with a hard-hit grounder to short by Teddy O’Neill, driving in a runner from third. After one inning, it was tied at one a piece, and the game evolved into a pitching and defensive battle.
Swampscott’s pitching, especially from the starter Michael Hall, was fantastic. Hall would go on to pitch five innings striking out eight and only allowing one run.
On his performance, Hall said, “I think I did pretty well pitching, five innings only one run; I always try my best to locate the pitches for my catchers.”
Hall’s Coach, Jeremy Kacuba, agreed with his assessment praising his pitcher’s performance, saying, “Michael has been a very consistent starter all year long and had his normal game today. He was throwing hard at the knees, keeping everybody moving, and working in off-speed. He looked great.”
The same praise can be heaped upon West Lynn’s starting pitcher Brennan Malloy, who pitched six innings, striking out five and allowing three runs.
“He had an amazing outing. He has been solid for us for years now, so we have come to expect it. I wish we could have put up more runs for him as he pitched his heart out. He just did great for us; he always does,” said West Lynn Coach Darren Malloy.
The big difference in the game was some timely runs that Swampscott put on the board and West Lynn could not match. Miles Brown hit a home run to right field in the bottom of the third to make the score 2-1 in Swampscott’s favor.
Later in the bottom of the fifth, Swampscott got its only insurance run on a ground ball hit by Will Rowe that was played with a throwing error advancing the runner at third, home, making the game 3-1.
While West Lynn could not put any runs on the board, much of that had to do with the defense of Swampscott. Center fielder Tommy Cuttle had some great plays, including a sliding catch where he would throw the ball back to first before the runner could get back, executing a double play.
“Defensively, we started a little flat but then made some really big plays. Some basic plays and a play like Tommy’s; those types of outfield double plays are a pitcher’s best friend, so we love those,” said Kacuba.
In the top of the sixth, Beau Olivieri got the nod to close for Swampscott, and West Lynn, down to its final three outs, could not make a comeback.
“Beau came in; we needed our strong arm for a close and, after a little shakiness for the first couple pitches, nailed it,” said Kacuba.
On the loss ending West Lynn’s season, Malloy said, “This game does not define how they played. They were all good hitters all year, just hit a slump at the end. We had a big layoff from when the season ended to when we played. We had a lot of practice too in there, but the bats just seemed to go cold.”
He added, “These kids all know how to hit. They are all great ball players, and they are great kids too. They will bounce back for sure.”
