Stannard hit gives Slaters dramatic win over Terriers in 8th
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Fair Haven's Todd Savage (34) charges onto the field to hug teammate Nate Stannard after Stannard knocked in the only run in a game against Bellows Falls in Fair Haven on Tuesday. ALBERT J. MARRO / RUTLAND HERALD |
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By Chuck Clarino Staff Writer - Published: June 3, 2009
FAIR HAVEN – All Nate Stannard wanted was a base hit and the No. 9 hitter for the Fair Haven Slaters got his wish.
Stannard's line single to right with one out in the eighth inning delivered Jesse Maynard from second and allowed the third-seeded Fair Haven Slaters to escape with a 1-0 victory over a pesky, No. 14 Bellows Falls team Tuesday in a Division II nail-biter at Bill Wood Field.
"I was just looking for a base hit," said Stannard, the Slaters right fielder. "It was a fastball, a little outside and a little high and I knew if I could get it past the right fielder we'd be golden."
Stannard, an 18-year-old senior, was golden and was mobbed by his mates and hoisted into the air by teammate Todd Savage.
The sad part was that neither starting pitcher Quentin Young from Bellows Falls nor Andrew Patch from Fair Haven, who had dueled so splendidly, were credited with the win.
Patch, who had yielded but an infield single and struck out 18 batters through seven innings of work, was out of the game. Patch fired 110 pitches and according to VPA rules, could only pitch 120 in a game. Slater coach Kyle Ruby chose to bring on freshman Dan Brown at the start of the eighth inning instead of during the inning if Patch reached his quota.
"It changes the dynamics of the game for sure," said Ruby of the 120-pitch rule. "It's something that you have to factor in. But Patch was tremendous. He bowed his back when he had to and when he was backed into a corner he came out with all his guns blazing.
"It's too bad (he didn't get the win) but it's all for one and one for all in this game."
Young also deserved a better fate.
The BF senior right-hander matched zeros with Patch, albeit not quite so dynamically.
Young scattered four hits, walked two and struck out seven. He was tough in the clutch, working out of jams in the second and fifth innings, and kept the Slaters off-balance and lunging after his offerings.
"This was a great pitchers' duel," said BF coach Bob Lockerby. "It's sad for Quentin's high school career to end like that but there's a lot of good things that are going to happen for him; he's just that good a person."
The duel of right-handers presented contrasting styles.
The power-pitching Patch used his ample heat and steely determination to blow away the Terriers batters.
He recorded a strikeout in each of the seven innings, while fanning the side in the second, third, fourth and fifth innings. At one point, he set down six straight via the strikeout, hit a batter and then struck out the next eight.
He was especially tough when the Terriers had men on base.
In the second he hit the leadoff batter and an error put runners on first and second. Patch then struck out the side. In the seventh, he again hit the leadoff batter and yielded his lone hit – an infield single to Luke Brophy. A wild pitch moved the runners up and Patch struck out the next two and induced a weak comebacker to get out of the inning.
"We were one hit away; one hit away all day," said Lockerby. "But they played like a 12-3 team and we didn't play like a 6-10 team."
But the game had to end sometime.
Brown came in at the top of the eighth, and struck out the first batter and retired the second on a pop-up before Jeremy Kilburn reached on an infield error. But Brown got Riley Clark to pop out to end the inning.
Young came out for the eighth and walked Maynard to open the inning. A wild pitch moved him into scoring position but Young got the next hitter to strike out and up stepped Stannard, who turned out to be Mr. Clutch.
"It was the Quentin Young-Andrew Patch show," Ruby said. "But freshman Dan Brown stepped up and so did Nate Stannard. But I tip my cap to Bellows Falls for one hell of a game."
BF closes out its season at 6-11, while the 13-3 Slaters advance to meet Harwood here Friday.
chuck.clarino@rutlandherald.com
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