LEWISTON – The Lewiston Lumberjaxx returned to the baseball diamond on Sunday for a twinbill versus the Frozen Ropes house team No. 2 at Elliot Ave. Little League complex and celebrated a sweep, 6-5 and 11-6.

Gage Cote got the start on the hill for Lewiston in the opener, opposed by Cam Dube. The game got off to a rousing start when Sean O’Donnell made a diving catch on a sinking liner to left to rob Caleb Rice of a base hit.

Frozen Ropes scored thanks to two errors in the first, but the Lumberjaxx rallied back in the bottom of the inning on hits by Cote and Jean-Luc Dostie and a sacrifice bunt by Brady Cusson.

The score didn’t stay tied long, as Frozen Ropes scored three times in the second. The key hit was a two-run blast to deep center field by Alex Floridino. Cam Dube and Caleb Rice each contributed base hits.

Lewiston cut the gap to 4-3 in the third on a Dostie single. Cote and Kaleb Morrisette fueled the rally with stolen bases.

Frozen Ropes tallied another in the top of the fourth on a hit and two straight steals by Nick Stasium. Kevin Ly pocketed the RBI. But Lewiston rallied again to tie the game in the bottom of the inning on RBIs by Cote and O’Donnell.

In the fifth, the Lumberjaxx struck again when Jalen Allison reached base on a walk and was driven in with a single by Austin Merritt. Damien St. Pierre relieved Cote in the fourth and Hunter Landry took over on the mound in the fifth to secure the win. 

The Lumberjaxx completed the sweep with Merritt getting the start against Floridino.

Frozen Ropes got the contest started with a bang when Stasium opened the game with a triple to deep right-center. Kyle Roark drove him in on the next pitch.

Tristan and Floridino each added an RBI to make it 3-0 after one. Both teams eked out a run in the second inning before Lewiston got to Floridino in the third.

Helped by four walks, hits byDostie and Landry and Merritt’s three-run double, Lewiston landed a 6-4 lead. The ‘Jaxx scored two more in the fourth.

Grant Hartley took the mound in relief of Merritt and pitched well despite giving up two unearned runs.

Frozen Ropes loaded the bases in the fifth inning, only to have a potential run cut down at the plate to end the threat on a pinpoint throw from left field by Morrisette to catcher St. Pierre blocking the dish.

The Lumberjaxx padded their lead in the final frame on a three-run triple by Dostie. Cusson closed the door for good in the sixth. 

Lewiston travels to Oxford Hills Saturday, Sept. 25. For more information on the team’s schedule, go to www.lewistonlumberjaxx.com.

Team competing for grant

To 20 youth sports organizations demonstrating their commitment to responsibility on and off the field, Liberty Mutual will soon make contributions in the amount of a $2,500 Responsible Sports™ Community Grant. The newly formed Lewiston Lumberjaxx are hoping to be one of them.

Community Grants are part of Liberty Mutual’s Responsible Sports program, an ongoing effort championing and celebrating responsibility in youth sports. This community-based program offers meaningful, easy-to-use educational resources for youth sports parents and coaches, including access to on-the-field game and practice preparation tools, as well as self-paced online coursework filled with learning tools, videos, and topics addressing youth sports issues.

“The Liberty Mutual Responsible Sports program targets many of the issues we see happening at youth sporting events by shining a positive light on what it means to be a responsible coach and a responsible sports-parent. Beyond that, Liberty Mutual is making a significant financial contribution to support the efforts of local organizations like the Lewiston Lumberjaxx,” said Greg Gordon, vice president of Consumer Marketing at Liberty Mutual.

The Responsible Sports program provides access to valuable resources and assets that can ensure our organizations thrive even under challenging circumstances.

“Our goal as an organization is to have our players take pride in their community. To take pride in the way they present themselves at games, as well as the way they conduct themselves in every day situations,” said Lumberjaxx head coach Rodd St. Pierre. “Baseball presents us a way to teach life’s little lessons. Through it all, the players not only have a healthy outlet for their energy, but they learn to become better adults capable of being productive citizens making responsible decisions. Hopefully, that translates into a better Lewiston/Auburn.”

The Lumberjaxx encourage individual community members to complete one of the self-paced online courses (Responsible Coaching and Responsible Sport Parenting) and take a 10-question review quiz. Every completed quiz is worth one point. The organizations that earn the most points by the end of the grant period,  Nov. 30, in each of the three divisions will earn one of the 20 grants.

Youth sports organizations (club programs, park and recreation departments, etc.) are competing for one of 14 $2,500 grants in two divisions, large and small, based upon the number of players. And six school athletic programs will earn a $5,000 grant. The more people each registered organization gets to complete the courses, the greater its chances of winning.

Complete details on the grants as well as the qualifying self-paced courses are available through the official program website at ResponsibleSports.com. To show your support, visit ResponsibleSports.com/Grant.