RallyNorth.net

Long day at LeLacheur rewarding for Georgetown

Saturday, June, 11 By Chuck Frye
Staff writer

LOWELL — Some things are certainly worth the wait.

With nearly a three-hour rain delay washing away early game jitters, Georgetown shook off a tentative start with a vengeance. Sending 17 batters to the plate in the first two innings after the break, the Royals effectively cracked Trinity Catholic's defense with constant pressure, surging to a convincing 9-2 victory at LeLacheur Park for the Division 4 North championship.

Georgetown will finish its season Tuesday against the winner of yesterday's rained-out South semifinal between Cohasset and West Bridgewater for the Eastern Mass. title.

With a freshman in Pat Slack on the mound and big stakes on the line, nerves were bound to be an issue. And when Trinity Catholic loaded the bases in the first inning while the Royals got just one runner on in the first two innings,  retiring Royals head coach Mark Rowe had that accounted for.

"I knew that once through the order we'd struggle against (Falcon pitcher Brett O'Keefe)," Rowe said. "And Pat was nervous but he settled down and got us out of that inning (by striking out Joey Brennan and getting Sean Haugh on an infield grounder). I felt right there that we were in a good position."

When the game restarted in the third inning, Slack was a different pitcher. After throwing 22 balls in 42 pitches over two innings, Slack's omnipresent curve ball found the mark as 73-percent of his pitches were strikes the rest of the way. Working six innings, Slack struck out five while giving up four hits.

"The ball got slippery but I just kept asking for a new one, so that was fine," Slack said. "I didn't lose any pitches (because of the rain) and the curve worked (yesterday)."

And offensively, Georgetown had one simple goal in the top of the third inning according to leadoff hitter Ryan Browner.

"It was key for Ryan O'Rourke to get on base," said the senior — who went 4 for 4 with three runs scored himself. "If he got on, the whole momentum would swing our way."

And it did. The No. 8 hitter walked, Slack looked to move him up but dropped a perfect bunt down the first base line for a single, and Browner did the same toward third base to load the sacks. Mark Berkland walked to force in a run, Adam Johnson delivered an RBI sacrifice fly, and Colby Ingraham's infield grounder plated Browner while a throwing error on the play brought in Berkland. Game over.

"We just wanted to score first," Browner said. "We wanted to put them in a hole so they'd have to try and get out of it."

"When we came back out we were going to be aggressive," Rowe said. "We focused on getting the lead guy on and I knew we were going to bunt a little bit.

"You want to put pressure on the defense," Rowe continued. "You're in the state tourney, you got a wet baseball, the field is slippery, all kinds of things."

The Royals forced four errors in all as O'Keefe gave up just two earned runs through six innings.

Georgetown salted away the title in the fourth when O'Rourke scored on a wild pitch, Browner on Jared Lathrop's infield single and Johnson on a passed ball.

"I'm so proud of the kids," Rowe said of a 6-14 regular season that magically turned into a sectional championship. "Realistically, the season was not fun. I don't care what anyone says about, 'You have fun playing baseball.' You have fun playing baseball when you win and we didn't do a lot of that. But I told the kids that if they're going to let us in (the tournament), we're going to make them pay."