LYNN — In a city series championship game for the ages, the Wyoma Red Sox took home the title after defeating the West Lynn Dodgers, 5-4, in a 10-inning affair that took 18 hours to complete.
“Absolutely epic baseball game that these kids will all remember forever,” said Wyoma manager Jeff Newhall after the Red Sox won the long-lasting Lynn Little League summer tradition for the second consecutive year. “Our kids were so excited to win against an excellent West Lynn team.”
It was a classic pitchers’ duel through four innings Friday, as Wyoma’s Justin Young and West Lynn’s Ben Naugle were locked in a scoreless game. With the Red Sox not having much going early, Young escaped a major jam in the fourth, striking out the side after the Dodgers loaded the bases with no outs.
Wyoma (15-3), winner of 14 straight games after a 1-3 start, found the scoreboard in the fifth. Kingston Spain (walk) and Chris Herd (reached on error) came across on a throwing error for a 2-0 lead.
In the bottom of the fifth, the Dodgers scored when Adrian Barrington (2-for-4, 3 RBI) laced a single to left. Young (4 1/3 IP, 4 H, R, 6 K) exited after reaching his pitch limit and reliever Liam McMahon registered a strikeout to keep the lead at 2-1.
With Wyoma just two outs from the city title, Ryan Marmolejos launched a solo home run deep over the center field fence in the bottom of the sixth to tie the game, 2-2. Wyoma went in order in the top of the seventh and the Dodgers came close to winning in the home half.
After a pair of errors, second baseman Andrew Newhall fired a perfect throw from behind second base and catcher Chris Herd applied the tag to send the game to the eighth.
Wyoma took a 4-2 lead in the top of the eighth. McMahon doubled deep to left before Marco Owumi (3-for-5, R, RBI) laced a triple to right and scored on an overthrow.
Naugle (7 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 9 K) exited in the eighth, reaching his pitch limit after tossing a tremendous game. In the bottom half of the eighth, Wyoma was one out away from the title again before Barrington singled to plate a pair and send the game to the ninth.
Wyoma loaded the bases in the ninth, but West Lynn reliever Jaxon Gonzales got a grounder for a force out at the plate and a line out to escape the jam scoreless. In the bottom of the ninth, the Dodgers were inches away from walking it off again, but Herd made a stellar play on a wild pitch and beat the runner to the plate for a tag out to end the inning.
“Both teams made so many great plays under pressure with the game on the line — something you don’t always see from 10-, 11-, and 12-year-olds,” said Newhall, whose team took three of five games against the Dodgers this season.
In the top of the 10th, Coleman Myette (2-for-4, run) led off with a single and advanced to second on a wild pitch before the lights went out at Wyoma’s Reinfuss Field, suspending the game until Saturday. McMahon (4 1/3 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 6 K) was excellent in relief before reaching his pitch limit after nine innings.
The game continued at 1 p.m. on Saturday and lasted just 12 minutes. Myette, who was on second when the lights went out Friday, scored on a Spain fly ball to right. Owumi came on in the 10th to pitch and recorded a strikeout, groundout to Newhall at second, and another grounder back to the mound that he raced over to the first base bag to secure Wyoma’s win on just 10 pitches in the frame.
