Tigers have rout stuff

Tyngsboro breaks out in blowout of North Reading

LOWELL - Tyngsboro entered yesterday's Division 3 North final against North Reading known as a team used to playing in tight games. The Tigers had won in extra innings Saturday and four of their previous seven wins had come in their final at-bat.

But the Tigers were ready yesterday. They came into the game knowing North Reading starter Kevin O'Leary would be around the strike zone and jumped often on his first pitch, collecting 20 hits. They scored early and often, spraying line drives and gap shots all over LeLacheur Park in a 16-2 romp that clinched their second consecutive sectional title.

Tyngsboro advances to the EMass final against South champion Westwood.

A five-run second inning was highlighted by Mark Lane's two-run triple but that was only a precursor to a six-run fourth inning in which it took Hornets pitchers nine batters to get a single out. Run-scoring singles by Dylan Brown and Mike Szablak and some control issues for North Reading pitching (three walks and a hit-batsman with the bases loaded) helped Tyngsboro coast to a 12-2 lead.

The Tigers added four runs in the seventh, an inning punctuated by Colin Halloran's ringing three-run triple.

"Whoever we put out there and whatever they threw, they hit," North Reading coach Frank Carey said. "There was no way we were going to overcome 20 hits. They outplayed us in every facet of the game and all we can do is give them credit for it."

Tyngsboro gave starter Nick Joyce a big lead, but he pitched as though it was a typically tight Tigers game. He painted the corners to perfection in going the distance, allowing eight hits and striking out three. Joyce got into a bit of trouble in the third but held the Hornets to two runs, striking out two batters after North Reading had put men on second and third with no outs.