Lee Sac Bunt Keys 11th-Inning Rally for SteepleCats
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — In a game that saw both teams misfire on multiple bunt attempts, Hunter Lee finally dropped one down in the bottom of the 11th inning.
Then Joe DeLuca lifted the North Adams SteepleCats up for a 2-1 win over the Sanford Mainers that kept the ‘Cats’ season alive for one more night.
DeLuca’s RBI single to left drove home Graham McIntire to tie North Adams’ best-of-three New England Collegiate Baseball League playoff series at one game apiece.
The SteepleCats and Mainers will play on Wednesday night in Maine to decide who goes on to play for the Northern Division championship against either Vermont or Laconia.
The winning rally started when McIntire drew a leadoff walk, bringing up Lee, whose eight sac bunts the season were third on the team.
Lee bunted at the first pitch but sent it to the backstop. He then swung away and fouled off another pitch for strike two.
Afterward, he said North Adams coach Mike Armstrong took off the bunt sign with two outs.
“Once I got two strikes, it was up to me, and I trusted myself that I could get it done,” the High Point University sophomore said. “Luckily, I did, and DeLuca picked me up there at the end.”
Prior to Lee’s final plate appearance, successful bunts eluded both teams. The ‘Cats popped one up that almost turned into a double play in the third but went on to score a run anyway. The Mainers failed twice, including once in the top of the 10th.
“Especially in a game like that, it comes down to the little things,” Lee said. “I missed a bunt too, on that first pitch. I was trying to do too much. But luckily I got that last one down.”
North Adams (22-22) went up, 1-0, in the third when Michael Babb drew a leadoff walk. After the failed bunt left him at first with one out, he stole second before McIntire drove him home with a single up the middle.
It stayed a one-run game until the top of the seventh.
With two out, Hunter Wood singled to left for Sanford. The next man was hit by the first pitch on a call that Armstrong disputed, arguing that the Mainers’ Harrison Wenson turned into the pitch.
David Schanz followed with a single to right to drive in Wood, but North Adams’ right fielder Parker Perez threw a laser to Jim Haley at third to catch Wenson trying to go first-to-third and end the inning.
That marked the end of the night for North Adams starter Matthew Kostalos, who struck out eight over seven innings while allowing the one run on four hits and four walks.
Derek Baker came on to hold the lead for three innings, and Jared Habershaw picked up the win with a 1-2-3 11th.
“That was huge,” Lee said. “Pitching and defense has kind of been our backbone all year. We’ve struggled to find the bats sometimes, like tonight. And luckily, we got the last hit. Tomorrow, if we’re going to win, we’re going to have to do the exact same thing.”
