Manchester
Lebanon was presented with a trophy for winning its division during a pregame ceremony but then played like anything but champions. Post 22 managed just five hits against Dover lefthander Bryan Woolley, the last three during its final at-bat.
“He didn’t really come inside on anybody. Everything was away, and we’ve got to do a better job at adjusting and shooting the ball the other way,” said first-year Post 22 coach Travis Pelletier, whose team plays division rival Alton Post 72 (8-7) at noon today in a losers bracket elimination game. “We haven’t seen too many lefties, and he did a good job keeping us off-balance.”
Even that last turn at the plate was tough for Lebanon. Kyle Hammond led off with a pop-up that dropped between the right fielder and second baseman and tried to stretch the single into a double. He was thrown out and the next pitch went to the backstop, followed by two more singles.
The next batter, Hunter Boutin, flied out to the center fielder. Runner Derek Griffin was almost all the way to third base when the catch was made, however, and he was easily doubled off second. Griffin turned and sprinted to the home dugout, flipped his helmet aside as he entered it and disappeared down a tunnel underneath the stands.
Griffin didn’t return in time to partake in the postgame handshake line, and his play and frustration seemed to encapsulate Post 22’s evening.
“You gotta give them credit for just outplaying us,” Pelletier said. “Their defense was sharper, their pitching was spot on and they fouled off a lot of pitches and got hits with two strikes. They took advantage of the extra base quite a bit when we fell asleep.
“Their coach had them ready to play today, and maybe I didn’t have our guys ready. They beat us in every aspect from coaching on down.”
Cedric Elkouh started on the mound for Lebanon (13-3) and allowed seven hits and five runs, all earned, during 4 innings. The rising sophomore at Massachusetts’ Phillips Andover Academy retired the side in order to start the game, but Dover began the scoring during the second frame.
After allowing a leadoff single, Elkouh hit the next batter in the helmet. A double steal and a strikeout followed and then came a bunt. Catcher Andrew Hadlock looked to throw to third base but no one was covering it, leaving the bases loaded. Woolley, the next hitter, lined a ball off one of Elkouh to drive in a run.
“A couple close pitches didn’t go his way, and he took one off the ankle area,” Pelletier said. “He’s a tough kid and he doesn’t want the ball taken away from him, but maybe it was bothering him more than he let on. He threw around 90 pitches, which through five innings isn’t really effective.”
Dover began the third inning with a one-out walk followed by a stolen base. The next batter singled into the right-center gap to score a run and center fielder Charlie Goodrich overran the ball, allowing the hitter to reach second base. A walk and a two-out single made the score 4-0.
Dover (14-3), the second-place finisher in its division, scored once more during the fifth inning, three times during the sixth and twice during the seventh. Eli Jaynes and Emrys Elkouh were Post 22’s relief pitchers. Cedric Elkouh had two singles and was the only Lebanon player with more than one hit.
“We didn’t do the little things, like hitting the cutoff man or throwing to try and get the lead runner instead of throwing behind him to keep a force play on,” Pelletier said “We were a little lackadaisical, and we have to be sharper if we want to do anything down here.”
Notes: Pelletier said backup catcher Tyler Tewksbury needed roughly 15 stitches on his forehead and under one eye after being cut by a runner’s spikes during a home-plate collision in his team’s next-to-last regular season game. Tewksbury suffered a concussion and will not play again this summer, the coach said. … Hanover High’s John Loftus, a catcher and outfielder, and Stevens’ Derrick Stanhope, a pitcher and outfielder, are no longer with the Post 22 juniors, leaving a 15-player active roster. … Post 22’s Trey Parker has been wearing a protective boot over a high ankle sprain for a week but took it off for the game and was a substitute in right field. … Post 22 business manager Pete St. Pierre worked the entrance gate from 9 a.m. to5:30 p.m. and then chased down foul balls hit over the stadium’s grandstand during the final game. … Lebanon committed three fielding errors in the outfield, Gill Stadium’s artificial turf appearing to play a role in two of the gaffes.
Tris Wykes can be reached at twykes@vnews.com or 603-727-3227.