GORHAM – The 2008 American Legion Baseball state tournament proved a couple of things:

1) There is not enough field drying agent in the world to combat a wet week in August, and

2) Trying to hang around with Nova Seafood for seven or eight innings may show that you can compete with them, but it’s no way to beat them.

Nova broke two games open late Saturday to win it’s first state title since 2004, the year it went on to win the national championship. It clinched its sixth state crown overall with a 7-0 blanking of Gayton Post 31.

After play was washed out by three straight days of rain, organizers moved the tournament from a saturated Augusta CARA Complex to the University of Southern Maine, which looked no worse for wear despite the seemingly non-stop deluge.

Three games were scheduled for Saturday, with a fourth planned for Sunday back in Augusta, if necessary. It turned out not to be. Gayton reached the championship round with a 8-6 triumph over Gardiner in the morning. Nova, which went undefeated for the tournament, dispatched Bessey Motors, 7-2, in the second game (see related story).

“We didn’t play our best baseball today. The rest of the tournament, we played some of our best baseball,” said Nova catcher Matt Watson, who was named the tournament’s MVP after hitting .560 with four homers and 11 RBI). “But we battled, and we’re going to turn it on in this regional.”

The regional begins Thursday in Bristol, Ct.

Gayton coach Todd Cifelli started Lisbon’s Kyle Neagle against Nova in the nightcap even though Nova had scored seven runs in seven innings in Gayton’s first game of the tournament last Saturday. Neagle rewarded his faith with seven strong innings, yielding three runs on six hits.

“Kyle battled very, very hard against them the last time without his curve ball and his change-up,” Cifelli said. “His curve looked better today and his change was the best we’ve seen this year.”

Unfortunately for Gayton, Jamie Ross was able to escape trouble time and time again. Ross (6-plus innings, six hits, three walks, hit batter, three Ks) enjoyed just a single 1-2-3 inning, the sixth. Gayton put two men on with one out in the second, third and fifth innings, and with two out in the fourth, and couldn’t come up with the timely hit.

Taylor Candage threw three perfect innings to get the save.

“The story of the game was Nova’s pitching. Ross did a great job and Candage has been to many rodeos before. We just couldn’t break through, and that’s why they’re the best team in the state,” Cifelli said.

Nova (26-3) broke the scoreless tie when Watson led off the fourth with a walk, stole second and scored on Candage’s single. Neagle buckled down again until the seventh. With runners a first and second and none out, Gayton’s Travis Dyke threw Marc Ouimet out at the plate on a Cameron Sprague single, but alert Sam Balzano and Sprague alertly moved up to third and second, respectively, on the throw. Dan Brown followed with a two-run single.

Gayton’s defense let up in the ninth to allow Nova to break the game open with four runs. Two errors, plus RBI singles by Matt Powers and Jack Heary and an RBI triple by Brad Shaffron (three hits) added to the cushion against reliever Eddie West.

“We couldn’t get any breaks today. That umpire behind the plate was terrible,” West said. “They’re a really good baseball team. We’re not bad ourselves, but … Matt Watson is a hell of a player for them. He’s a tough out.”

West played a key role in getting Gayton to the championship round, cracking a pair of doubles, scoring two runs and then ending a late comeback attempt by Gardiner in relief of starter Jeff Keene.

Gayton used a three-run eighth to break a 5-5 tie. West sparked the rally with a leadoff double, moved to second on Mekae Hyde’s single, then scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch. Consecutive singles by Robbie Leeman and Neagle drove Hyde home, then Leeman scored a big insurance run on Will Emerson’s ground out.

Zone 3 champion and state runner-up Gayton finished the season 20-8.

“I’m very, very proud of our guys. I think we did this with a good cross-section of players. We’re certainly young. We lose two off the roster next year (Dyke and Erik Waite),” Cifelli said. “But we’ve got to go back down and climb back up the mountain. They don’t just put us back in the championship next year. It starts with hard work in the fall and winter and the spring.”

Neagle has two hits in each game for Gayton. Hyde and Joe Sullivan were named to the all-tournament team.