After a tough regular season playing against mostly Class B and C schools in the Mountain Valley Conference, Wiscasset High School coach Mike Bowles felt pretty good about his team’s chances as the Wolverines began the Western D postseason on Wednesday.
Bowles’ confidence was well-founded after his Wolverines rolled to a 10-0 Mercy Rule blanking of No. 5 Valley in the quarterfinals, sending Wiscasset to topseeded Richmond on Saturday (10 a.m.) for the Western D semifinals.
It was an all-around good game for the Wolverines, especially on the mound where Darren Wood and Tyler Bailey permitted just two hits and struck out 12.
The first three innings featured lights-out pitching by Wood, while also keeping his pitch count low. Through three innings he gave up no hits, no walks and struck out seven. Wood returned to his usual spot behind the plate for the fourth, as Bailey took over and tossed two shutout frames.
“I got to a point in the third inning where I had to make a decision up 3-0,” said Bowles. “Tacking on a few more runs, you start to think in the back of your head about Saturday. Now I have three guys available for Saturday.”
Bases loaded
In the fourth inning, the Cavaliers put a scare into Wiscasset when they loaded the bases with no outs in Bailey’s first inning on the mound. After a fielder’s choice back to the pitcher and two strikeouts, Bailey got out of the jam and kept the shutout alive.
“You know, Darren pitched great, and Tyler Bailey came in and got into a little jam, but once he got the first out under his belt he settled down and we were lights out from their,” said Bowles. “We came out and showed what type of team we really are.”
Offensively, Wiscasset’s biggest inning came in the third as the Wolverines scored four runs off hits by Wood, Bailey, Chandler Longfellow and Nate Howard. Wood backed his pitching with a solid offensive performance, going 3- for-4 with three singles, three RBIs and a stolen base.
“To prepare for Saturday’s game, I’ll take some more batting practice when I get home tonight because the more swings the better,” said Wood.
Wiscasset was also led by Longfellow, who was 2-for-3, while Grant Hefler and Matt Craig chipped in a pair of singles each.
Bowles feels his team is ready for the top-seeded Bobcats on Saturday.
“I told the kids this was a complete game from the time we did infield and outfield, until the last pitch of the game,” said Bowles. “That’s the play that will carry us forward to the next game. Our overall goal is to get to Saint Joe’s and hopefully to Bangor. Richmond on Saturday will be a fun and entertaining game.”
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