AUGUSTA – On the bus ride to Augusta, Peter Potthoff of Cheverus dreamed of what his last baseball game might be like.
Would it be memorable? For a stage, he couldn’t have picked a better one — the Class A state final.
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This time, dreams became reality.
Potthoff, who said this was his last game, had two doubles, a home run and five RBI to spark the Stags to their first baseball state championship with a 9-1 victory against Lewiston on Saturday at Morton Field.
While Potthoff shined on offense, left-hander Joey Royer was impressive on the mound, overpowering the Blue Devils at times. Royer held Lewiston to two hits through five innings before settling for a five-hitter, striking out seven.
Potthoff plans to concentrate on academics in college. He will study veterinary science and marine biology at the University of Tampa. He wants to be a veterinarian.
“I need to make some good grades so it will be all studies in college,” said Potthoff.
“I dreamed of having a game like this on the ride up. Having it happen and our team winning, there’s no better feeling.”
Cheverus (18-2) took two innings to get its offense rolling, but once it did, it was a sampling of the type of aggressive hitting that carried the Stags to the No. 1 ranking in Western Maine and the Telegram League championship.
Cheverus scored three runs in the third, two on Potthoff’s double down the left-field line.
The Stags made it 5-0 in the top of the fifth. Potthoff drove home a run with his second double, which caromed off the fence in left-center.
Cheverus then broke it open with a four-run sixth.
Louie DiStasio hit a two-run double to left and Potthoff followed with a homer over the fence in right-center for two more runs and a 9-0 lead.
“Their pitchers hung me some fastballs,” said Potthoff.
Royer gave up a leadoff homer to Luke Cote in the sixth inning. Cote’s homer hit the top of the high fence in right, 300 feet away, and bounced over.
After an out, Lewiston (18-2) put runners on second and third, but Royer left them stranded by getting a pop to second, then a called third strike.
Royer, who missed a month of the season with tendinitis in his biceps, returned with a two-inning stint against Westbrook in the Telegram League final and has been impressive since.
“Joey was dominant,” said Cheverus Coach Mac McKew. “He had command of all his pitches. We played solid defense behind him. We’re really strong up the middle defensively.”
“We knew Cheverus was an aggressive hitting team. They hit balls hard. We haven’t seen a pitcher like Royer since last August,” said Lewiston Coach Todd Cifelli, referring to the New England American Legion tournament that included Gayton Post of Lewiston.
Potthoff missed nearly all of his junior season with a broken left thumb.
“I was anxious for the season to start,” he said. “It felt pretty good at the start of the year.”
Potthoff’s hitting got hotter as the season progressed, and he capped it with a performance to remember.
“It was his last game,” said McKew. “I’d say he went out in style.”
Staff Writer Tom Chard can be contacted at 791-6419 or at:
tchard@pressherald.com
Twitter: TomChardPPH
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