Old Town claimed the Class B North baseball title with a 2-0 win over Hermon on Wednesday.
BANGOR, Maine – The No. 1 Old Town High School Coyotes owe much of their success this season to great defense and impressive pitching performances.
That proved true again, as the 18-1 Coyotes shut out the No. 3 Hermon High School Hawks, 2-0, in the Class B North regional final.
Kaleb Gifford pitched a perfect game in Old Town’s 3-0 victory over No. 9 Belfast in the quarterfinals, and he was on the mound again for the Coyotes on Wednesday. The senior right-hander threw seven shutout innings against Hermon, striking out three while allowing only two hits and three walks.
“It feels good. Hermon is a great team,” said Gifford. “I’ve just got to pitch my game and do what I do.”
“He definitely got better as the game went on,” said Old Town coach, Brad Goody. “He’s a battler.”
Old Town players pile on starting pitcher Kaleb Gifford after the final out in the complete game victory.
Nick Guerrette was strong on the mound for Hermon, striking out two and giving up only two hits in the fifth inning while not allowing a walk in the game.
“We knew it was going to be a pitchers’ battle,” said Goody. “One or two runs, I thought, could win this game.”
Unfortunately for Guerrette and the Hawks, two hits was all that Old Town needed.
Old Town Junior Austin Sheehan singled with one out in the bottom of the fifth. The next batter, Gifford, reached on a single to the left side of the infield. A wild pitch to TJ Crawford allowed both runners to advance. Crawford then hit a ground ball to second baseman Alex Applebee, who came home with it. The throw was not in time, and Sheehan scored the eventual game-winning run.
The Coyotes added a second run before the inning was over, when a throw from Hermon catcher Christian Greener ended up in left field.
“We’re doing enough to win games. We know, with our pitching staff, that one or two runs will do it,” said Goody.
The Old Town defense remained strong during the final two innings of their errorless game. Third baseman Ethan Stoddard and shortstop Drew Coulombe each finished the game with five assists. Junior catcher Cole Daniel helped Gifford with the few runners that reached base for Hermon. Daniel picked a runner off first base and threw out another runner trying to steal second.
“He [Gifford] knows, with our defense, that he can throw a strike down the middle at any point and we’ll make a play for him,” said Goody.
The two teams met twice during the regular season. Hermon handed Old Town their only loss of the season, 2-1, on May 3. Old Town beat Hermon, 3-1, in the rematch on May 17.
Hermon ends the season with a 14-5 overall record. They finished the regular season 12-4 before beating No. 6 Waterville, 13-6, in the quarterfinals, and No. 10 Nokomis, 6-0, in the semifinals.
With the victory, Old Town advances to their first state championship game since 1993, when the Coyotes lost the Class A state title to Deering, 6-4.
“It’s extremely exciting,” said Goody. “I couldn’t be happier for the kids and our school.”
They will face the No. 7 Freeport Falcons, who knocked off No. 1 Cape Elizabeth, 3-1, on Wednesday. Freeport, who will be playing in their first state title game, finished the regular season 10-6. The Falcons beat No. 10 Morse, 5-1, in the preliminary round, No. 2 York, 7-2, in the quarterfinals and No. 3 Greely, 1-0, in the semifinals.
“We’ve just got to play our game. We’ve just got to pitch and play defense and get some timely hits,” said Goody.
The game is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. on Saturday, June 18, and will be played at Mansfield Stadium in Bangor.
