By any means necessary.

That’s how Deering’s baseball team has won games this spring. And fittingly, the Rams found a way to hold off Westbrook and go into the postseason on a high note in the regular-season finale Tuesday afternoon at Hadlock Field.

Senior ace Avery Lawrence worked out of a bases-loaded, no-out predicament in the top of the fifth, then junior shortstop Tavian Lauture hit a two-out, RBI triple in the bottom half and freshman catcher Miles Lawrence added an RBI single to propel Deering to a 3-0 victory.

The Rams, who failed to win a game in 2023, finish the season 6-10 and will take part in the postseason in a nonopen tournament year for the first time since 2018.

“These close games are the most fun,” said Deering’s first-year coach Casey Lawrence. “They keep everyone engaged and to come out on top, it’s just great.”

Deering squandered chances in the second inning, leaving runners at second and third, and again in the third, as Avery Lawrence tripled with one out, but Lauture popped out and Miles Lawrence struck out swinging.

Westbrook’s first good chance came in the top of the fourth as catcher Jason McCarthy doubled with one out and Avery Lawrence plunked pitcher Zach Jalbert with a pitch, but a pair of groundouts kept the game scoreless.

The Blue Blazes (1-15) then loaded the bases in the top of the fifth on a walk and two errors, but Avery Lawrence fanned Connor Girard on three pitches, got Connor Boulette to pop back to him near the mound, then got his glove in the right place at the right time on a sharp line drive up the middle off  McCarthy’s bat to escape the jam.

“Those errors fired me up and I had the mindset to put it on my back and get us through it,” Lawrence said. “I threw it as hard as I could and hit my spots.”

Gus Groh got things started in the bottom half, singling to left with one out and taking second on a wild pitch. Westbrook starter Zach Jalbert fanned Avery Lawrence, but Lauture crushed an 0-2 pitch to the left-center gap for a triple, easily scoring Groh.

“We had hits throughout the whole game, but we couldn’t get the runs in,” said Lauture. “I went up and I saw the pitch and I knew it would find the gap. I thought I was going all the way around.”

Miles Lawrence tacked on an insurance run with a single up the middle.

Avery Lawrence did the rest, striking out the side in the sixth. Lawrence worked around a leadoff walk in the seventh, fanning Boulette to end the game.

“We definitely put in the work this year and had a huge improvement,” said Avery Lawrence, who allowed three hits, walking two and striking out 10. “You can tell we want it. We’re still working. We’ll come back out next Tuesday and hopefully surprise more people.”