NORTH ADAMS, Mass. – North Adams Police Department jumped out to a 4-0 lead and held on for a 4-3 win over Lee’s Wildcat Sports Group Wednesday in the semi-finals of the Berkshire County Cal Ripken minors division tournament at Kemp Park.

 

David Atwell had an RBI single at the plate and was one of three NAPD pitchers to combine for 16 strikeouts in the six-inning win.

 

Balls in play were hard to come by for either team, but Atwell and Ben Vivori each singled in the bottom of the first as Police scored a run that proved to be the difference in the game.

 

“We switched our lineup for the first time this year for this game, and our goal was to get some runs in that first inning,” NAPD coach Patrick Wood said. “And we got the one.

 

“We put Ben Vivori at the top. He’s been our most solid hitter. He has not been leading off. We put him up first just to try to get him on, move him along the basepaths and try to get the ball in play.”

 

The tactic worked. Vivori delivered an infield single and moved up on a couple of balls that got to the backstop before Atwell hit a one-out infield single of his own to make it 1-0.

 

NAPD then scored three times without the benefit of a base hit in the bottom of the second.

 

A walk and two hit batters loaded the bases for Steven Fortier, who worked a walk to drive in a run. Vivori then walked to make it 2-0, and Paxton Wood hit a one-out ground ball to the left side. WSG got the forceout at third, but Fortier came home on the play, maxing out NAPD’s three runs and ending the inning with the home team up, 4-0.

 

Logan Pigott opened the top of the third with a walk for Wildcat Sports Group. And Patrick Steben and Styles Soules each walked with one out to load the bases.

 

Mitchell Osak grounded back to NAPD pitcher Atwell, who threw to first for the out, allowing Pigott to get the Lee squad on the scoreboard at 4-1.

 

Oliver Lipa then got the biggest hit of the night for his team, a single up the middle to bring home two runs and trim the deficit to one.

 

“We had kids stepping up all over the place,” WSG coach Brandon White said. “It was [Lipa’s] day, and he did a phenomenal job.

 

“And we didn’t quit. We’ve been down before, and we’ve come back.”

 

WSG’s pitchers also held NAPD scoreless after the second, leaving runners in scoring position in the third and fifth innings, to give their offense a chance.

 

Ben Felver, Osak and Brody White combined to strike out 10 in five innings of work for WSG.

 

Vivori, Atwell and Wood split the pitching duties for NAPD, which moves on to Saturday’s final against Rumbolt Law of Williamstown at Williamstown’s Bud Anderson Field.

 

“We knew we had a good group of returning players,” Wood said. “We had, I think, six kids returning from last year. So we knew we had some solid pitching and some good hitting coming in.

 

“Then we had five brand new kids come on the team, so we had to get together. We knew maybe we’d be in the playoffs, but this was a big goal for our team.”

 

WSG, which finishes the season 8-3-1, also has plenty to be proud of.

 

“We’ve come leaps and bounds from throwing to catching to hitting,” White said. “It’s been a great, great season. A lot of kids moved around. A lot of kids learned new positions. Our pitching was good.

 

“It just wasn’t our day today.”

 

Photos from this game to come.