The catcher goes
5-for-5 at the plate.
AUGUSTA – When Bessey Motors’ Garrett Olsen was asked what it was like to play someone different after the long American Legion season, the Oxford Hills graduate gave the “glass half full” kind of answer.
“It’s kind of nice because they hadn’t seen me before,” said Olsen. “They don’t know that I like to swing early.”
Calais (14-14), the Zone One runner-up in the 2003 Maine State American Legion Baseball Tournament, knows all about Olsen now.
The red-headed catcher drove in five runs, going 5-for-5 including three doubles and a home run, to power Bessey Motors (19-5-1) to an 11-2 romp over Calais in first-round action at McGuire Field here Sunday.
The reward for the win by the Zone Three champions? A date with Zone Four winner and defending state champion powerhouse Nova Seafood of Portland. Bessey will square off today at 3 p.m. at Morton Field.
Bessey put the pressure on the Suns constantly, putting runners on base in every inning and totaling 13 hits for the game.
“We hit the ball well tonight,” said Olsen. “I think we have a good chance in this tournament because we are all here. During the season it’s hard because people have to work and stuff, but we are all here and hitting.”
Bessey took control for good in the fifth with a pair of runs.
With the local team holding a 2-1 lead, Kyle Kenniston opened the inning by reaching on an error and was followed by one of Olsen’s doubles, moving Kenniston to third. Jeff Austin drove in Kenniston with a sacrifice fly, and Olsen headed home on a single to right by Tyler Bryant.
Three more runs in the sixth silenced the Calais dugout. Kenniston drove in one with a single and Olsen added two more with a double to left.
A two-run towering homer to left center by Olsen in the eighth powered a final four-run outburst.
“Garrett’s been a great hitter for well all the past four years in high school,” said Bessey Manager Shane Slicer. “He is our catalyst. He plays great and he can play any position.”
Slicer agreed that it didn’t hurt that Calais hadn’t seen him before.
“I think that helped. Finally their coach asked on like the fourth time up: ‘does he always hit the ball like that?’. I was surprised they were actually pitching to him.”
Calais managed just six hits off Bessey pitchers Joe Baker and Corey Tielinen. The Suns tied the game at one when left fielder Steve Colbeth led off the fourth with a solo shot to center.
“The kid (Baker) did a good job,” said Calais Manager Ken MacDonald. “He threw strikes and we didn’t do anything to break his rhythm or get him in trouble.”
“I think the biggest thing we do well is pitch,” said Slicer. “Baker is good. He hasn’t lost all summer. He had good command of the strike zone.”
“I wasn’t happy in the fact that I think our hitters cheated themselves,” said MacDonald. “They weren’t swinging at good pitches and they swung at some marginal ones. Hopefully, we will snap out of it tomorrow.”
Calais had the extra burden of the trip to Augusta as well as play the game.
“We did,” said MacDonald. “No excuses though. We are used to traveling and that is American Legion baseball. I don’t want to take anything away from them.”
Calais will face Monmouth in a losers’ bracket game at 11 a.m. at Morton Field.
pmullen@sunjournal.com
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