STANDISH — Jack Davenport said he and his Freeport High baseball teammates are treating every game they play these days as “just another game.”

But what the Falcons are doing is extraordinary.

Seventh-seeded Freeport won its first regional baseball championship Wednesday night, upending top-ranked Cape Elizabeth 3-1 for the Class B South title at St. Joseph’s College.

That completed a remarkable run through the playoffs, which also included wins over second-ranked York and third-seeded Greely.

“It’s special to be with these kids,” said Davenport, who drove in the first run and pitched a complete-game victory. “What we’ve done here, the crowd, the fans for Freeport, it’s just awesome. They know we can do big things and I think we know that too.”

Freeport (14-6) will play Old Town (18-1) for the state championship at 11 a.m. Saturday at Mansfield Stadium in Bangor. Cape Elizabeth finished 13-6.

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Davenport allowed six hits and no walks, striking out three. He also jump-started the offense with an RBI double in the top of the first, driving in Joey Burke, who had reached on the first of four Cape Elizabeth errors.

“Coming in we knew they were planning on jumping on us early. That’s what they did the first time they played us (a 10-0 Cape win on May 4),” said Freeport Coach Bill Ridge. “We felt if we can get one in the top and put a zero in the bottom of the first, that might put them on their heels. And if we keep that lead, who knows?”

Freeport did put the Capers on their heels and took a 2-0 lead in the fourth when Joshua Burke singled with one out, went to third on a throwing error on an attempted sacrifice by Caleb Rice, then scored on a two-out infield error.

The Capers came back with an unearned run in the bottom of the fourth – Pat Macdonald scoring on an overthrow – but Freeport got that back in the top of the fifth. Max Doughty led off with a single, was sacrificed to second by Joey Burke, went to third on a wild pitch and scored on another wild pitch.

“Baseball is a funny game,” said Cape Coach Andrew Wood. “Obviously we didn’t play as well as we could, but they deserve everything they got. Good luck to them. I hope they finish it off.”

Davenport wasn’t going to lose the lead. He retired the final six batters he faced – the biggest scare a long fly by Marshall Peterson with a man on in the sixth that left fielder Caiden Shea caught on the warning track.

Davenport, fittingly, put the final touch on the win, taking a throw from first baseman Austin Langley to make the last out at first, setting off a celebration that including a long line of high-fiving with the Freeport fans gathered along the first-base fence.

“That’s the whole town of Freeport there,” said Ridge. “That’s huge. Those fans have been remarkable. It’s been the difference for us.”


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