KENTS HILL – Gray-New Gloucester agreed to play Maranacook at a neutral site in Saturday’s Western Class B softball semifinal in part because the Patriots were told that the field conditions would be superior after a week of rain.

Hey, it sounded good. Problem is, G-NG didn’t get the part of the memo that explained the reason for the relative dryness: Kents Hill School’s immaculate track is made of FieldTurf. But while players and fans howled in protest, Patriots coach Gregg Eggleston expected the best.

“When we came here the girls were acting like, ‘Aw, man.’ I told them I thought it was really going to work in our favor,” Eggleston said.

Two perfectly placed bunts on the carpet and a throwing error set the table for two fourth-inning runs, and G-NG ace Laura Getchell slammed the door with a two-hitter as the No. 4 Patriots chased away the top-seeded Black Bears, 2-0.

Gray-New Gloucester (14-4) will meet the winner of the Fryeburg-Cape Elizabeth semifinal in Tuesday’s regional championship at Saint Joseph’s College in Standish.

Stymied by Maranacook’s Sarah Maxwell to the tune of nine up and nine down, five by way of strikeout, the Patriots turned to the time-honored practice of shrinking the diamond to the few inches of real estate in front of home plate.

Alicia Valente legged out a bunt single to break Maxwell’s spell and lead off the fourth. Getchell’s attempts to sacrifice Valente to second continued even after Maxwell notched two strikes on her opposite number.

“I don’t think I’ve ever done that (bunted with two strikes) before,” Getchell said. “I was like, ‘What do I have to lose?’ “

Getchell averted the strikeout with fair contact down the third-base line. Katie Dore’s throw was a tick late and just wide of first, putting two runners into scoring position with none out.

Maxwell fanned Rachel Clement, but catcher Abby Ryan’s leisurely roller to Lyndsay Cochran at shortstop was enough to drive home Valente. Getchell moved up to third in the process, then scored on a wild pitch.

“It’s going to come down to who makes the least amount of mistakes. No one’s going to club the other team to death,” said Maranacook coach Terry Hickey. “It’s going to come down to one throw, one thing.”

After the two runs, it came down to one arm.

When Getchell finally whiffed Amanda Laporte at the end of an intense, 16-pitch at-bat for the second out of the fourth inning, it started a streak of seven consecutive strikeouts for the tall, hard-throwing senior.

“The catcher kept looking over to me like, ‘Should we throw a change-up?’ And I was like, ‘No, let her win it.’ That’s a key battle,” Eggleston said. “You just throw strikes and see if she can win the battle.”

Getchell struck out 13 and walked one.

Maranacook’s only base hits were a bunt single by lone senior Ally Kennedy with one out in the second and an infield safety by Laporte with one out in the seventh.

Kennedy erased herself by leaving early on a stolen base attempt. Brynna Bedard kept the inning alive with a walk and a steal, and Shelly Ouellette’s screaming line drive had the potential to put Maranacook (16-2) on top. But Valente made a sweet stab at first base to retire the side.

“Ally Kennedy had that base stolen by 20 feet but left a little early. Shelly Ouellette hit that ball so hard it would probably still be going, but the girl stuck out her glove. That’s the way it works,” Hickey said. “Getchell was on her game today. She leaned back and was just firing. Give her a lot of credit.”

Maxwell had a one-hitter in her own right until G-NG loaded the bases with singles by Ryan, Kassie Wilson and Morgan Wilson in the seventh. The Maranacook junior also registered 13 strikeouts, including the 500th of her career when Kassie Wilson went down swinging to start the third inning.