Baseball team rides hot streak back to playoffs

With clutch pitching and hitting by senior Kevin Powers, the CHS baseball team won their last four games — including three on the road — to reach the .500 mark and qualify for the south sectional playoffs.

With the victories, the Bulldogs finished the regular season at 10-10 and earned their third consecutive postseason berth. The MIAA was expected to release seeding information on Tuesday, with Canton likely to grab one of the last few spots in the Division 2 south bracket.

Senior Kevin Powers (Mike Barucci photo)

Assistant coach Cam Giangrande credited the late-season surge to the team’s 11 seniors, who “never doubted themselves,” he said.

The first win during the recent streak came at home on May 20 as Powers led the Bulldogs over Cohasset 7-0 with a dominant pitching performance. Fellow senior Jim Jenkins finished 3 for 3 in that game with two RBIs.

The team then traveled to Sharon last Monday, and head coach JP Scott decided to start Steve Gorham in order to preserve the arm of number-two starter Griffin Jerrier, who was slated to pitch the finale. Scott said he had confidence in Gorham to get the job done, and the senior rewarded his coach’s faith with a brilliant six-inning performance as the Bulldogs prevailed 5-4. Powers led the offense with three hits, two RBIs, and two runs scored.

Scott brought back Powers on three days’ rest for Tuesday’s game at Fairhaven, and Powers showed his leadership and all-star talent as he pitched the Bulldogs to a 6-0 shutout win under the lights in a rainy game. Powers was dominant, limiting Fairhaven to three hits while striking out a whopping 12 batters.

After the game, Scott declared, “There hasn’t been a better pitcher at CHS since Bobby Witt,” who went on to pitch for 16 seasons in the Major Leagues.

Offensively, senior Joe Peccia had the biggest hit of the game, knocking in two with a massive triple. Senior Sean Doyle also had a good night at the plate with three hits and an RBI.

In the clinching win over Cohasset on Friday afternoon, Scott’s decision to save Jerrier paid off as the senior captain went six strong innings, allowing just three runs. Fittingly, it was Powers who took the ball from Jerrier in the seventh. He got the outs, extending his scoreless innings streak to 15, and in the four must-win games he finished with two wins and a save.

Powers was also one of five seniors who finished with two hits in the season finale, along with Peccia, Joe Bires, Jenkins, and Doyle.

Short URL: https://www.thecantoncitizen.com/?p=33503

Posted by Mike Berger on Jun 3 2016. Filed under High School, Sports. Both comments and pings are currently closed.