D2 Recap

By James Schneider, Globe Correspondent

LOWELL – Luckily for Plymouth North, Tom MacInnes isn’t the greatest bunter.

The junior fouled off two bunt attempts with the winning run on second and no outs in the top of the tenth inning of yesterday’s Division 2 State Championship game at LeLacheur Park in Lowell, quickly falling behind 0-2.

But MacInnes’ next swing was much more productive, as the right fielder hit a liner that tailed toward left center, out of the reach of the diving centerfielder for his second hit of the game. Jared Canney, who led the inning off with a double that took a terrible hop off the third baseman and into left field, rounded third and headed home, scoring the only run of the game as Plymouth North defeated Auburn 1-0 in ten innings.

“How do you figure, you miss a bunt and then the kid gets a base hit,” Plymouth North coach Dwayne Follette said. “But he hit the ball hard all day.”

“I was anxious, I didn’t execute [on the bunt],” MacInnes said. “[On the hit] I thought the kid might have had a chance [to catch it]. He’s a great centerfielder.”

But the tailing liner dropped in, giving Plymouth North the perfect ending for a perfect season, as the Eagles (26-0) became the first undefeated team since Auburn pulled the feat off ten years ago. The heartbreaking loss ended a great run through the tournament for Auburn (18-7), who entered the central tournament as the seventh seed.

“There’s no easy way to lose,” Auburn coach Eric Swedberg said. “We did everything we could.”

The game was a showcase for two outstanding pitchers, as Auburn’s Jeff Croteau and Plymouth North’s Joe Flynn each pitched a complete game that extended well beyond the normal call of duty. Each was well deserving of a victory, and it took ten innings for one to finally surrender a run.

“Jeff Croteau, it was his game out there,” Swedberg said. “He was not coming out. We’re not a fan of doing that but he pitched an unbelievable game.”

But Flynn was just one notch better. The junior hurler went ten innings, striking out eight while surrendering just four hits. Flynn seemed to get stronger as the game wore on, recording six of his eight strikeouts after the sixth inning. He threw 111 pitches, 81 for strikes.

“The kid’s throwing 85 [mph] in the tenth inning, blowing people away,” Follette said. “I was worried because that was his last inning. He had come back on three and then four days rest and he was tired, he told us.”

Flynn gave up a double to start the seventh inning, but that seemed to rejuvenate the junior. He responded by striking out five of the next six batters he faced and allowed just one more hit the rest of the game.

Flynn’s pitching performance set the stage for MacInnes’ dramatic walk-off single, a fairy-tale ending for the junior that transferred back to his home school from Catholic Memorial this year.

“[I came back here] because I wanted to be with my friends. [Getting the game-winning it] was awesome, it was a thrill,” MacInnes said. “We worked hard all year and it paid off.”