Lebanon
The Lebanon boys rallied from a 3-2 deficit in the eighth but Rob Woodward, their veteran skipper, wasn’t overly impressed. He knows a rosy outcome can obscure cracks that can prove deadly in the long run.
“It’s nice to come back and take the ball game away,” said Woodward, whose club improved to 2-1 after losing its previous game to Sweeney Post 2. “But I’m never satisfied leaving 11 or 12 guys on base and that’s happened to us the last two games.
“When we got runners on third base and less than two outs, we have to cash in with a productive out or a gapper.”
Post 22 received considerable help during its comeback. With two out in the eighth and Trey Parker and Henry Day on first and second courtesy of a hit batter and a walk, Nate Perkins beat out a base hit to load the bases for the second time in three innings.
The next batter, Caleb Broughton, represented the top of the order and he lined a single up the middle to score Parker. Goffstown’s center fielder then overran the ball, allowing Day to score what proved to be the winning run.
Parker, who just finished the ninth grade at Cardigan Mountain School, took the mound to start the bottom of the ninth but surrendered back-to-back singles and was yanked in favor of Jacob Tetley, who recently graduated from Woodsville High.
“It’s (Parker’s) first time hitting the mound this summer and you can’t just lay it in there,” Woodward said. “He realizes that.”
Tetley didn’t pitch this spring but showed no signs of rust. He induced a grounder up the middle that he fielded and threw to third base for a force play and the inning’s first out. Then he coaxed another grounder which shortstop Broughton and second baseman Coby Hussey turned into a double play.
“You’ve got to be very, very happy about that,” Woodward said. “When it’s your time, shine. And he sure did.”
Goffstown used a single followed by a double to take a 1-0 lead in the first inning off starting pitcher Chase Hussey, a 2015 Stevens High graduate who just completed his freshman year at UMass-Dartmouth. A relief pitcher who saw only five innings of action, Hussey said he nonetheless improved his form, command and strength through practice and dedicated conditioning work.
“I worked a lot on my strength and my fastball,” said Hussey, who’s noticeably thicker and estimated he now throws in the mid- to high 80s, an improvement of 4 or 5 mph from this time last year. “
Lebanon produced a 1-1 tie during its half of the first. Hanover’s Will Smith doubled and was singled home by 2015 Newport graduate Andrew Houde. Houde played basketball at Keene State but later left the school.
“For the first couple games he was all tied up at bat,” Woodward said. “He wasn’t getting his hips open but we made a little correction. He ain’t there yet but you’ll start to see the ball fly with him.”
Goffstown’s Kyle Perron cranked a lengthy home run to left-center field to give his team a 2-1 lead during the fourth inning. Lebanon answered again during its half of the frame, Houde tripling and being driven in on a Matt Braley sacrifice fly.
Goffstown went up, 3-2 on a play that left Lebanon fans and coaches shaking their heads. Eagan Nickerson tripled and Colby Hussey caught the relay throw from right field. He turned and threw the ball high and towards his brother, who wasn’t paying full attention. Chase Hussey leaped and the ball ticked off his glove and rolled towards the visiting dugout, allowing Nickerson to score.
“It caught me off guard and I didn’t jump as hard as I should have,” Chase Hussey said. “But I should have gotten back to the mound quicker. I was so rattled.”
Lebanon reliever Cedric Elkouh retired the side in order during the eighth inning and Woodward, trying to get as many arms aired out as possible made the switch to Parker for the ninth. The game belonged to Chase Hussey, however, who allowed five hits and three runs in seven innings while striking out three batters and walking four.
“My arm was a little sore today and my curveball just wasn’t with me,” he said. “I was leaving it up but all I could do was battle and give it all I got.”
Said Woodward: “As a pitcher, if you go out and give me seven innings and three runs or less when you don’t have your good stuff, that’s a hell of a job.”
Lebanon is at Milford on Tuesday and visits Goffstown two days later before returning to host Bedford on Saturday afternoon. The Post 22 junior team hosts Alton that morning in something of a split doubleheader at Lebanon High.
Woodward thinks his team, which like its junior affiliate, was sent home early from last summer’s state playoffs, has a chance for much better things this time around.
“If we can be ready to turn on pitches from the moment we get into the batter’s box instead of always watching the first one to see what a pitcher’s got, we’re going to be dangerous,” he said. “We’re young and we’ll make mistakes, but we’ll deal with it.”
With pushups if necessary.
Notes — Tetley, considered the ace of Woodsville’s staff entering the season, did not play for the Engineers this spring because of an eligibility snafu. He’s headed to New Hampshire Technical Institute in the fall and plans to play there… Hussey allowed three hits and struck out 14 Laconia batters during Post 22’s season opener. He’s thrown more than 100 pitches in each of his two outings this summer… Parker, Elkouh and Dere Griffin are Post 22’s “swing players”, meaning they’re part of both the senior and junior team rosters… Day is the son of new Cardigan headmaster Christopher Gray. He played for Plymouth’s legion organization last season.
Tris Wykes can be reached at twykes@vnews.com or 603-727-3227.