SOMERSWORTH, N.H. — The Upper Valley Anglers 19Us clinched home-field advantage for the quarterfinals of the upcoming New Hampshire COVID Baseball League playoffs, needing eight innings to overcome the Dover Greentoppers, 10-7, on Sunday at Noble Pines Park.
The Greentoppers (9-11) were the only team that could have supplanted the Anglers (11-9) in the NHCBL’s top four. Upper Valley avoided the need for a tiebreaker with a three-run eighth after rallying from a three-run deficit in the seventh.
Nolan Gantrish (Hanover High) and pinch hitter Casey Graham (Hanover) walked to start things off in extras. Back-to-back sacrifices, the latter by Andrew Hadlock (KUA), plated Gantrish to break a 7-7 tie.
An error on a grounder from Brendan Walker (Woodsville) and an RBI single from Ben Williams (Hanover) completed the rally. Upper Valley then shut down Dover in the home eighth for the victory.
The Greentoppers held a 5-0 lead when the Anglers’ offense woke up in the fifth inning. Trey Parker (KUA/Roanoke College) and Hadlock drove in runs to reduce the deficit to 5-2. The visitors scored twice in the sixth and three times in the seventh, the latter coming on a three-run double from Keegan Silovich (Hanover) to force extra innings.
Williams had a team-best two hits for Upper Valley. The Anglers will open the best-of-three quarterfinals on Friday at Lebanon High, facing either the Greentoppers, Lakes Region (9-11) or New Hampshire Prospects White (9-11).
LEBANON — The Upper Valley Anglers 17Us capped the New England Independent Baseball Leaue season by splitting a doubleheader with the STA Saints at Lebanon High.
Ben Katz (Lebanon High) capped the Anglers’ 5-4 win in the opener with a game-winning, two-run double in the bottom of the seventh inning. Down 4-3, Upper Valley’s Ian Hedgepeth (Hanover) reached base safely, Dom Van Leare-Nutting (Fall Mountain) took first base on a force-out grounder and Wes Stocken (Hanover) got on to bring up Katz, whose one-out, walk-off single plated Hedgepeth and Van Leare-Nutting for the win.
Jon Carrier (Lebanon) earned the victory on the mound, throwing a complete-game three-hitter with three strikeouts. Katz finished with three RBIs. Hayden Chandler (Fall Mountain) went 2-for-2 with a two-run double for the Anglers.
The Saints took the second game, 11-6, thanks to a five-run second inning that erased an early 1-0 deficit. Carrier drove in two runs and Katz and Chandler offered one RBI apiece for the Anglers, who finished their season at 2-18.