RallyNorth.net

Thu, May 22, 2008 04:00 PM @ North Andover

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	Final
Pentucket	0	0	1	1	2	0	0	0	0	0	4
North Andover	1	0	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	1	5

Livingston, Knights work OT for a piece of CAL crown

Friday, May, 23 By Hector Longo
Staff writer

For an effort like this, the North Andover High baseball team deserved more than just a quarter of a Cape Ann League large division championship.

The Knights, now 14-4 overall and 10-3 in the CAL, will settle for just that and a berth in tomorrow's first Lawrence Invitational Tournament semifinal (4 p.m.) against Tewksbury.

Last night at the South Lawrence East School, Pentucket pushed North Andover to the limit, only to come up short, 5-4, in a thrilling, 10-inning Lawrence tourney opener.

The Sachems (10-8) will now play in a pre-prom tomorrow (noon) consolation here. North Andover, with the victory, carves out a quarter of the Cape Ann League large title, sharing the championship with Newburyport, Masco and Wilmington.

"I think we're disappointed a little, we wanted the championship outright," said Knight senior Taylor Livingston, who slapped an RBI single in the top of the 10th, breaking a 4-4 stalemate. "We really wanted to beat Masco to do it. This is all right. It has to be."

Livingston, who was the final out (with the bases loaded) in the 7-6 loss to the Chieftains Tuesday, was money when it mattered last night.

He slapped an RBI double in the sixth to make it 4-3, yielding to pinch-runner Karan Jhaveri, who came around on an error to knot it at 4-4.

Livingston then made the difference in the 10th with two down.

"After Masco, I wanted the chance to make up for it," said Livingston.

The hit made a winner out of senior reliever Jeff Cupka, who came in for Aaron Brunette in the fifth and shackled the Sachems. He got help from Brian Meikle, who grabbed the save, working out of a jam in the 10th.

"I felt really good in the bullpen, and it worked out for me, when I got on the mound," said Cupka, who tossed five innings of two-hit, shutout ball, striking out five and walking two.

Livingston had the best seat in the house to take in Cupka's nasty overhand curve.

"He told me when he came in from the pen that everything was working," said the senior catcher. "He was right. He's one of our top relievers and it showed tonight."

Pentucket had plenty of positives to rally around in this one, starting with the pitching of Mike Sloban and reliever Joe Martin.

Sloban challenged a dangerous North Andover lineup through 5<1/3> innings, allowing three earned runs on seven hits. The southpaw Martin then entered and slammed the door on the Knights until the 10th.

The run was unearned, making a tough-luck loser out of Martin, who fanned five in his 4<2/3> innings, allowing only three hits without a walk.

Pentucket had its chance in the bottom of the 10th, when Dan Johanson singled and moved to second on a Harry Shipps sacrifice.

The Knights summoned Meikle to pitch to Bobby DiSorbo. The junior was right on Meikle's heater, drilling it on a line to shortstop Brent Ringland, who stabbed it and made the easy unassisted double-play to end it.

DiSorbo had doubled and tripled in two earlier trips. Shipps smacked a two-run triple in the fifth, propelling Pentucket to a 4-2 advantage.

"I was proud of my team and the way we fought," said Pentucket coach Tom L'Italien. "We hadn't been playing like this in the last couple games, but we came out, played with emotion and battled, right to the end."