There’s nothing more incentivizing for a Lancer fan than watching their team steal a game from the Pinkerton Astros, and they were given the opportunity to do this on the diamond Saturday afternoon in the quarterfinal game of the Division 1 tournament.
The end result was a 4-1 victory for the white and blue.
At the center of it all was Londonderry’s senior pitcher Reece Manor. The team captain left the Pinkerton batters befuddled, surrendering four hits while striking out five in a complete game effort. Pitching in big games is nothing new for the six-foot righty, as he had already proven himself by hurling a complete game on the road against this Astros squad on May 4.
“I just did my thing and my teammates did exactly what we needed them to in the field,” Manor said. “We did it together. It wasn’t just one person.”
The bats were fairly quiet on both sides throughout the first four innings of play. The Astros knotted the score at one with a solo home run from their first baseman Asa Runge in the top of the fifth, but that would quickly be answered once Lancer catcher Jack Dingman created chaos on the bases in the bottom of the inning. He scored from first base after two horrific throws from the Astros fielders, giving the Lancers a 2-1 lead.
“When I scored from first my intention was to just get into scoring position,” Dingman said. “I saw the ball in the dirt at home plate and I took off for second. Then I saw the ball fly into the outfield and as I was running to third I heard Demas yell ‘get down, get down’. I saw the ball go over the third baseman’s head and I knew I was going to score right then.”
With runners on second and third, Dingman laid down a well-placed sacrifice bunt that pushed across the third run of the game. On the next at bat, Brandon Fish hit a sacrifice fly that extended the Lancer’s lead to 4-1.
Manor shut the door in the seventh to eliminate the Astros and secure a spot in the semifinal round.
Other key contributors to the victory were junior left fielder Luke Marsh, who had started the scoring with an RBI single in the fourth, and senior outfielder Nick Cote who scored a run and stole three bases, adding to his record-breaking total.
“The team played outstanding,” Dingman said. “We trusted each other 100% throughout the game, and that led to a victory.”
