RUMFORD – The Winthrop baseball team couldn’t stay out of the rain, but the Ramblers did manage to avoid Mountain Valley in an important MVC game Wednesday.

In a twist of fate, the Ramblers’ Easton Morang hit an RBI single to take a commanding lead and then kept his fingers crossed before posting a 7-5 win against a Mountain Valley.

Winthrop and Mountain Valley are ranked fourth and fifth, respectively, in Classes C and B. The event at Hosmer Field started and ended in bright sunshine, but there was plenty of action in between the sun and rain

Class C Winthrop (9-1) seemed to be in total control after scoring two runs in the fifth inning to take a 6-1 lead. Left-handed pitcher Forrest Dwyer looked strong, having allowed one run in five innings. Dwyer had pitched a gem last spring on the same field for the Ramblers’ win.

“It was a well pitched game and even the sixth was no fault of Forrest,” Winthrop coach Marc Fortin said. “If we had made the plays, then (Falcons) wouldn’t have made things so interesting. It started raining, and the ball got wet, and we made a couple mistakes.”

Mountain Valley (8-2) hadn’t been able to figure out Dwyer, but things unraveled in the sixth. Alex Gagnon reached on a fielder’s choice, Keith Brennick singled and Nate Woods was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Cam Kaubris beat out a dribbler for an RBI and two runs scored when Dean McCrillis batted ball was thrown away. Garrett McPherson hit an RBI-single, but the potential tying run was cut down at home on a fine relay throw by Dave Ricker.

“I’m proud of my kids for being able to come back and make things interesting,”Mountain Valley coach Steve LaPointe said. ”But we hadn’t done the little things earlier in the game, and it cost us. It all comes down to the fundamentals, and we need to be able to do them correctly in order to be successful.”

Winthrop scored four runs on five hits in a strange third inning. Brandon Dupuis was ruled safe after the umpire ruled Falcon pitcher Matt Laubauskas had touched the ball before it went foul on the first-base line. LaPointe argued the call, but the home plate umpire upheld his ruling. The flood gates opened as the Ramblers loaded the bases and Ricker hit an RBI single. Two runs scored on a Jake Steele bloop single and one run scored on Morang field choice.

“We had never beat them before in my 13 years and now twice,” Fortin said. “It feels good any time to be able to come up here and beat one of the top teams in the MVC. We have been hitting well as a team .300 batting average.”

Winthrop drew a bases-loaded walk in the seventh.

MV had manufactured a run in the fourth after Staires beat out a bunt. The Falcon catcher reached second on a wild throw, stole third and raced home on Gagnon infield hit. Brennick also singled, but Dwyer threw out Woods and John McKenzie flied out.

“We knew coming in to the season that we was not a great team,” LaPointe said. “So we can not afford to make mistakes. That is why the fundamentals are so important. This game was definitely winnable.”