Heavy Hitting Lineup Ends Fall Ball With Sweep

Auburn, ME – The CMCC baseball team ended its fall ball season with a sweep of Quincy College on Saturday, winning game one 10-0 and taking game two 16-0 over the Granite. Both contests finished in five innings on a very windy afternoon in Auburn. Brandon Gour had a stellar day, finishing the doubleheader going 4-for-6 with three RBIs and four runs scored.

"In 23 years of coaching, these were the worst conditions I've ever seen," head coach Ryan Palmer said. "The wind was brutal. We got very good pitching and timely hitting today. It finally all came together."

Game One, 10-0 W

Starting pitcher Kyle Delano set the tempo early for Central Maine by striking out the side to lead things off in the top of the first.

Brandon Gour led off with a single into left field in the bottom half of the inning. Ryan Stone moved him over to second before the speedy second baseman stole third and came home on a wild pitch to make it 1-0.

With two outs in the third, the Mustangs loaded the bases looking to make something happen. Levi Tibbetts outran the throw on a ground ball to the shortstop. Garren Post was hit by a pitch on an 0-2 count, and Jake Calver delivered an infield single in between third and short. That set the table for Gage Hubbard who delivered a double into left field that plated two runs. Shane Jewett followed that up with a fly ball high into the breeze that flummoxed the center fielder and eventually dropped for a two-RBI single. That made it 5-0 CMCC.

Central Maine had two hits in the fourth. Gour once again led things off with a line drive single. However, Anthony Tilton hustled to the bag on a ground ball to second, tagging and throwing to first in time for a double play. Post then hit a single into right field, only for a pop-up from Tibbetts to swirl back towards the field and be caught to end the inning.

A double steal put runners on second and third for Gage Hubbard in the bottom of the fifth. His fly ball was right at the center fielder, but popped out of his glove to allow Calver and Post to sprint home and make it a 7-0 lead. Gour drilled a heat-seeking line drive into center that plated Steven White and Jewett, and suddenly the Granite were in danger of having the game end early.

Ryan Stone did just as his ground ball with nobody out left Quincy College with no choice but to try to throw to the plate in time to prevent the run. But Hunter Merrithew slid across the plate in time to make it 10-0 Mustangs and end the first contest of the doubleheader after just more than 90 minutes.

Game Two, 16-0 W

If the early end to game one came in sudden and surprising fashion, game two was left in no double almost immediately.

Coach Palmer made the decision to put the top nine batting averages in the lineup, having to find some makeshift homes for players in different positions. The heavy hitting batting order worked out with CMCC scoring four times in the first and adding six more runs in the second to make things pretty anticlimactic for their final action before the spring season.

Quincy College did put runners on second and third in the top of the first. Jake Calver tracked down a fly ball out in a windy centerfield for the second out. Then Hayden Durrell fielded a ground ball at third and made the throw across the diamond in time to end the inning.

Brandon Gour led things off with a walk and took both second and third base on the same wild pitch, just keeping his foot on the bag to avoid being tagged out. Ryan Stone walked and Garren Post was hit by a pitch to load the bases for Levi Tibbetts. Gour scored on another wild pitch while Stone was thrown out at the plate on a chopper down the line.

The Granite made the decision to try and throw Tibbetts out on a steal of second which allowed Post to trot home for a 2-0 lead. Durrell then deposited a full count offering into left to make it 3-0. Catcher Cameron Dostie then brought him home with a hard-hit ball to the short stop that left no chance to make a play on a throw.

In the bottom of the second, Gour continued his stellar afternoon with an RBI double into right field that brought in Calver. Levi Tibbetts one-upped him by clearing the bases and legging out a three-RBI triple on his blast into right field that went to the wall.

But Brady Vincent had them both covered. After Durrell's sacrifice fly to center field scored Tibbetts, Vincent absolutely blasted an offering over the right field fence for a solo home run. As the sophomore from Edward Little High School crossed the plate, the Mustangs found themselves with a 10-0 lead.

Knowing they were probably in line for their last at-bats of the fall season when they came to the plate in the bottom of the fourth, the team batted around the order and put twelve total players in the batter's box scoring six more runs.

A Dostie single brought in Jewett. Calver reached on a throwing error by the third baseman that scored Mahaney. Merrithew also benefitted on a bad throw, this time from short, with Dostie and Calver crossing the plate. Gour walked and later scored on a ground out by Post. And Tibbetts reached on another ground ball to the shortstop with Merrithew trotting home.

Owen Scott came on in relief of Jeff Meisner to record the final outs in the top of the fifth, and the 2024 fall season was in the books with a 16-0 victory. The Mustangs finish autumn with a 12-6 record, counting exhibition games.

"It was a good way to end our very successful fall season," said Palmer. "Now its time to get ready for the spring."