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After ninth hitter Connor Manning reached for the third time of the game on a two-base throwing error, Nate Frongillo roped a run-scoring to right field to deliver Whittier a 4-3 come-from-behind victory over St. Mary's of Lynn for the Division 3 North title.

LYNN - Whittier starting pitcher Andrew Wells got into more than a few difficult situations against Newburyport yesterday.
The Clippers loaded the bases against Wells with one out or fewer in three different innings. They put the leadoff hitter on against the Wildcats ace in six different innings.
But Wells got outs when he needed them the most.
The Whittier ace pitched a complete game and allowed just two runs, one earned, on seven hits and three walks (one intentional) while striking out five.
Whittier won 6-2 over Newburyport to advance to the Division 3 North title game against St. Mary's on Saturday at LeLacheur Park in Lowell.
"There's a reason why he's the player he is," Whittier catcher Anthony Licciardello said about Wells. "He's a great competitor. He doesn't like to get beat. And he just gets the job down every time he's on the mound."
Whittier coach Joe Boland added about Wells: "That's just the type of kid he is. ... He was actually a freshmen when we went to Lowell. He played on that team. He was the starting third baseman. So he and (Nate) Frongillo and Licciardello have all been with us (since then). They didn't want to finish it until we got back to Lowell. Let's hope we have some luck in Lowell."
Licciardello calls all of Wells' pitches. He and Wells mixed up the fastball, curveball and slider well.
"We were trying to mix it up because we knew Newburyport can hit the fastball, but they were having a little trouble hitting the offspeed stuff," Licciardello said.
Wells has a lot of movement even on his fastball because he throws a two-seamer, a pitch that runs to the arm-side of the pitcher.
"I've been getting through them (tough innings) all year," Wells said. "You've just got to keep battling because if you give up, you're teams going to let up. As a senior, you've got to lead it."
Newburyport had a 1-0 edge after a half inning, but Whittier scored three times in the bottom of the first inning.
"We've been having great, timely hitting all season," Wells said. "And that's what it's been in the postseason. We've been trying to stay aggressive, take bases when we can, jump on the fastball."
Whittier's Ralph Francesconi stroked a big two-run double in the first inning.
"The other pitcher was good," Francesconi said about Newburyport starter Connor MacRae. "He had a little bit of control problems but he started to find his groove."

Whittier's baseball team was on the road against a higher seed, but that didn't bother its hitters in an 11-3 rout of Arlington Catholic. Led by Alex LoGuidice 3 for 4, 3 runs), the first three batters combined for seven hits and six runs scored and No. 3 batter Anthony Licciardello drove in four runs. Leadoff man Nate Frongillo scored three times. Devan Doucette went the distance for the win.

Andrew Wells drove a two-run single and Ralph Francesconi lifted a game-winning sacrifice fly as Whittier shook off Saugus' three-run explosion in the top of the eighth inning to pull out a 7-6 victory. Wells went the distance, yielding 10 hits but striking out 10 for the victory.

Pitcher Devan Doucette doubled, stole third and scored on a wild pitch in the top of the seventh for the winning run in Whittier's 3-2 victory over Blackstone in the championship game of the State Vocational Tournament. Doucette also allowed just four hits and struck out five in six innings to earn the victory.

Whittier baseball's offense came alive at its last possible moment, getting half of its six hits in the bottom of the seventh inning for a comeback, walk-off 2-1 over Greater New Bedford in the Voke tourney semifinals. Alex LoGiudice had an RBI single and Anthony Licciardello followed with a deep double to dead center field to score the game-winner. Solid defense from middle infielders Jaylin Deveau and Connor Manning backed up pitcher Andrew Wells, who finished with a four-hitter and five strikeouts. The Wildcats will hit the road to take on Blackstone Regional tomorrow in the finals.

Andrew Wells threw a 5-hitter with 10 Ks and no walks as Whittier beat Greater Lowell 5-0 to clinch the CAC Large title outright over the Gryphons. Nate Frongillo had three hits including a two-run double off the wall in the fourth. Frongillo and Anthony Licciardello each had three hits. Wells, Licciardello and Frongillo also helped the Cats to the 2010 title.

Senior Nate Frongillo stroked the first homer of his varsity career, a three-run blast in Whittier's 12-2 victory over Wayland.  Senior Anthony Licciardello also homered.

Andrew Wells struck out 15 in a complete-game five-hitter and Jorge Martinez drove in both runs as Whittier shaded Shawsheen 2-1. The Cats clinched a share of the CAC Upper title and can win it outright by beating Greater Lowell next Thursday.

Pinch hitter Alex LoGuicide smacked a two-out, two-run single, the key blow in Whittier's four-run sixth inning that led to a 5-1 win over Mystic Valley. Winning pitcher Andrew Wells deftly worked out of a pair of jams, ending a first-and-third threat in the first inning with a pickoff and escaping a bases-loaded situation with just one run surrendered in the fourth.