GARDINER – Chris Merrill pitched seven innings of three-hit ball to send fifth-seeded Edward Little to its first-ever Eastern Maine championship game with a 3-1 upset win over No. 1 Gardiner on Saturday.
Merrill struck out two and didn’t walk a batter in an efficient 75-pitch performance in the heat against the reigning KVAC champions.
“He did a great job. He was feeling it,” said EL coach Scott Annear. “We sat him down in the dugout between innings and got him fluids, and he just kept saying, I’m fine. I’m fine.”
Merrill surrendered the Tigers’ only run on a Stefan Black sacrifice fly in the first. Gardiner (14-4) managed just one hit after the first inning.
The Red Eddies (14-5) took the lead for good with two in the third when John Alexander, Kevin Pontbriand, Brian Erickson and Justin Ciszewski strung together four straight singles with one out. Ciszewski’s single to left plated Alexander and Pontbriand.
“It’s not like we pounded the ball, but we put pressure on them. The last time we faced them (a 1-0 defeat), we didn’t feel like we put enough pressure on them,” Annear said. “When you play a No. 1 team and you put people on base, your confidence starts feeding off of that.”
EL added an insurance run in the fifth. Erickson led off with a double, moved to third on Ciszewski’s sacrifice fly and scored on another sac fly by Kyle Giguere.
Merrill cruised from there, with the help of a great diving catch by Pontbriand to rob Tom Colby of a hit.
He retired the game’s final 10 batters.
Edward Little will meet No. 2 Oxford Hills, a team the Eddies beat, 8-5, late last month at Hebron Academy. The game will be played at 3 p.m. Wednesday at Mansfield Stadium in Bangor.
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