The season is winding down for Senior American Legion teams Highland Green and Zone 3 United. Neither will make the postseason, but that didn’t stop the squads from playing two entertaining contests on Tuesday at Bruce Kingdon Field.
Highland Green captured the opener behind a solid effort from pitcher Brendan Emmons, 6-4.
In the nightcap, Zone 3 recovered from a 7-1 hole with eight runs in the fifth, but watched as the hosts rallied for two runs in the bottom of the frame to tie it. The game ended in a 9-9 deadlock after five frames due to darkness.
“I thought we played hard, with just one bad inning in the second game,” said Highland Green (7-10-1) coach Bob Neron, whose squad takes on Coastal Landscape at Cheverus High School on Thursday before finishing the season on Saturday at South Portland’s Wainwright Field against Yankee Ford. “It was a good day. I was happy to get the games in.”
“He was the key in getting us through these two games,” said Neron. “I only had three pitchers available coming into these two games. Not knowing how much he had thrown, I wanted to get five innings out of him. He wanted the ball, and when I asked him if he wanted to go out, he said he did. He was the difference today.”
“I tried to establish the fastball quick, and tried to not get behind in counts,” said Emmons, who threw 114 pitches with nine strikeouts, two walks and six hits allowed. The four runs he permitted were unearned. “You can’t win games when you give up runs. We were able to hold them down.”
Zone 3 United (2-16-1) grabbed a 2-0 lead in the second on Emmons. Gibson Harnett scored on a Highland Green miscue, and Aiden Sweeney picked up an RBI single.
The hosts answered in the bottom of the frame as Haven Cutko (2-for-2) drove in Cole Bryant with a single.
The visitors were paced by a strong start from Luke Neal, who pitched four frames on three hits, three strikeouts and two walks.
But, as a steady shower began, Zone 3 went to reliever Sam Cloutier, who immediately ran into trouble in the fifth. Cutko singled, Kam Labbe walked and Hunter Lohr (2-for-3) bunted his way on to load the bases with one out. Cutko tied the game when Cloutier uncorked a wild pitch, and a long fly ball by clean-up hitter Cam Grant scored Labbe for a 3-2 Highland Green edge.
Zone 3 battled back in the sixth, with Joe Defusco trotting home on an Emmons wild pitch, but the hosts had one more push left. Liam Huston walked to open the Highland Green sixth, and back-to-back hit batsmen loaded the bases with nobody out. Kyle Brennan put Highland Green ahead to stay with a two-run single, and Lohr’s sacrifice fly scored Labbe for a 6-3 lead.
Emmons allowed one more run in the seventh as Sweeney scored on a wild pitch. Emmons’ ninth strikeout ended the contest.
Zach Mann was 2-for-4 to lead Zone 3 United in the opener.
Game 2
The nightcap seemed to be a cake walk for Highland Green, which scored at least one run in all five innings.
But, leading 7-1 heading to the fifth inning, Zone 3 United put together a rally, scoring eight runs on six hits and two Highland Green errors to claim a 9-7 lead.
“We didn’t want to give up. We made the trip here, so we wanted to do everything that we could,” said Zone 3 United’s Defusco, who resides in Yarmouth. “We play well when we’re loose. We are here to have fun. It is summer ball.”
The rally came out of nowhere, as Highland Green starter Kam Labbe of Brunswick cruised through four innings, allowing just two hits.
The hosts grabbed a 2-0 lead in the first. Lohr scored on a double steal, and Cam Cox trotted home on a passed ball. The lead grew to 5-0 in the second, with Cox (sac. fly), Grant (single) and Cole Bryant (single) picking up an RBI each.
Zone 3 scored in the third after a Highland Green error, but single runs in the third and fourth frames upped the lead to 7-1.
With one out in the fifth, Defusco singled, Jake Winchester was hit by a pitch and Nick McCann singled to load the bases. Labbe’s final hitter was Cloutier, who walked to force in a run. Lohr relieved, allowing run-scoring hits to Sweeney, Neal, Zach Mann, Eli Winchester and Harnett to make for a 9-7 contest.
Highland Green had one more rally left. Brennan walked and Lohr singled. A pair of wild pitches by Eli Winchester scored Brennan, and Lohr came home on a single by Cox to deadlock the game. With the bases loaded and nobody out, the Zone 3 United right-hander kept the game even, retiring the final three Highland Green hitters.
The coaches met and decided to end the game due to darkness.
Lohr was the big hitter for Highland Green, going 3-for- 4 and scoring three runs in the nightcap. For the two games, Lohr had a game-high five hits.
“The future is bright for that kid, and I expect to continue to see him improve,” said Neron of Lohr, who will play for Mt. Ararat next season as a junior.
Grant and Bryant had two hits each for Highland Green in the second game, with Defusco and Sweeney pacing Zone 3 United with a pair of hits apiece.
Highland Green 6, Zone 3 United 4
Game 1
At Bruce Kingdon Field in Topsham
| United | — | 020 | 001 | 1 | — | 4-6-1 | |
| Highland | — 010 | 023 | X | — | 6-6-2 |
Luke Neal, Sam Cloutier (5), Shea Wagner (6) and Nick McCann; Brendan Emmons and Hunter Lohr. WP — Emmons; LP — Cloutier. Repeat hitters — (U) Zach Mann; (HG) Haven Cutko, Hunter Lohr.
Zone 3 United 9, Highland Green 9
Game 2
| United | — | 001 | 08 | — | 9- | 8-2 | |
| Highland | — 231 | 12 | — | 9- | 11-3 |
Nick McCann, Zach Mann (3), Eli Winchester (5) and Luke Neal, Jake Winchester (5); Kam Labbe, Hunter Lohr (5) and Cam Cox. Repeat hitters — (U) Joe Defusco, Aiden Sweeney; (HG) Hunter Lohr (3), Cole Bryant. Records — Highland Green 7-10-1; Zone 3 United 2-16-1. Up next for Zone 3 United — Thursday at home vs. Yankee Ford, 5:30 p.m. Up next for Highland Green — Thursday at Coastal Landscape, 5:30 p.m.
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