BRUNSWICK

Brunswick scored two times in the bottom of the first as that proved to be all the Dragons needed as they took down Cony, 5-1 in Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference high school baseball action Saturday.

The win is the first this season for the Dragons (1-3) and new coach Craig Rogers, and the first for the program since the final game of the 2016 season, spanning 19 games.

“It was great to finally get that first win,” said catcher Scout Masse. “We have had some tough games to start the season and it feels good to come away with a win today.”

The Dragons were led by hurler Ichino Honda, who pitched seven innings, scattering nine hits and striking out three, while keeping the Cony hitters off balance all game.

“He’s been a great addition to our team this season,” said Rogers of the exchange student from Japan. “He’s a versatile player that will do anything you ask of him, all with a great attitude.”

Cony hitters found out early on how frustrating Honda was going to be. The righty changed up his speeds from the get-go, striking out Riley Geyer on a nasty off-speed pitch to start the game before getting a fly-out to right for two quick outs. After a single and walk, Honda settled down and got Mike Boivin to hit a comebacker to the mound to end the inning.

Coming off an 11-1 loss against Edward Little on Friday, the Dragons immediately took the bat off their shoulders, getting two quick singles off Cony starter Dakota Andow to start the frame for the game’s first score. Honda led the inning off with a hit and stole second before Zack Grant ripped a single, plating Honda. Masse followed with a fielder’s choice and stole second before Sam Sharpe singled home Grant for a Brunswick 2-0 lead.

“I’m hoping with the way we swung the bats in the win today, the kids will start believing in themselves and that they can win some ball games,” said Rogers.

The Dragons opened the season with defending state champions Bangor, keeping it close before falling late, 4- 0, while dropping a 5-2 decision to Lincoln Academy.

Cony fell to 0-3 in the early going, losing 6-1 to Messalonskee and 11-5 to Gardiner to start the season.

“Our guys came out swinging. Hats off to their pitcher for mixing it up with our hitters,” said Cony coach Don Plourde. “We have to be able to string a few hits together to push across some runs.”

The Rams biggest threat came in the fourth innings. A one-out infield single by Robert Stolt followed by an Ashton Cunningham two-bagger put runners on second and third. Geyer hit a grounder to third base and Sharpe fired home to Masse, with the Brunswick catcher applying the tag on Stolt for the second out of the inning. A fly-out a batter later stranded two Cony runners, leaving the Rams behind 2-0 after three-and-a-half innings.

Still clinging to a two-run lead in the fifth, the Dragons looked to get some insurance runs. After a Dalton Dickey single and an intentional free pass to Honda with one out, both runners moved up to second and third with stolen bases. Geyer, who replaced Andow on the mound a couple innings earlier, stepped off the hill, attempting to pick off Honda at second base.

Dickey broke for the plate and the throw from the Cony infield slipped past the catcher, allowing Honda to score as well, giving the Dragons a 4-0 lead.

“That was a big play right there,” said Rogers. “He (Honda) made that play happen all by himself and it got us some big insurance runs.”

“Those two runs in the fifth hurt us,” said Plourde. “They hustled and we didn’t make the play.”

The Dragons (1-3) added another run in the sixth after a Sharpe triple and a Cam Dutton sacrifice fly for a 5-0 advantage.

After striking out two batters in the sixth inning, Honda came out in the seventh for an attempt at the shutout. He recorded the first two outs before the Cony bats finally made some good contact on his pitches. Four straight singles by Mike Lachance, Tyler Dostie, Boivin and Mitchell MacFarland plated one run and brought the tying run to the plate.

After a brief visit from Rogers, the coach decided to keep his starter in the game. A couple of pitches later, Honda retired the final Cony hitter on a pop out to end the game, leaving the bases loaded.

“He didn’t want to come out. Coach Rogers came out after they scored and asked how he (Honda) felt. He smiled and said ‘good’ so we knew he was good to go,” said Masse. “He mixes up his pitches and throws some off-speed stuff, making his fastball tremendous. He’s fun to catch.”

When asked about his first win, the pitcher just smiled and said, “It was great and the sun (finally) came out!”

Honda was 1-for-1 with two walks, two stolen bases and a pair of runs. Sharpe was 2-for-3 with a single, triple and a run batted in.

Lachance paced Cony with a pair of singles and a stolen base. Dostie also had two hits and added a walk. MacFarland had the lone RBI for Cony (0-3).

The Dragons travel to Camden Hills today, before heading to South Paris to take on Oxford Hills on Tuesday. They return home on Friday to host Mt. Blue at 4 p.m.