JAY — After several strong seasons in the Mountain Valley Conference, the Spruce Mountain baseball and softball teams have found gaining wins in the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference extremely difficult.
Both teams will miss out on the playoffs this season. With one game remaining on the regular season schedule it appears both will finish in 14th place in Western Maine Class B Heal point standings.
Softball has won just one of it’s last seven games including recent losses to Nokomis, 9-7, and Gardiner, 12-0.
A series of errors in the fifth and sixth innings allowed Nokomis to make a big rally and record a 9-7 victory over Spruce Mountain.
Austin Leighton led powerhouse Nokomis (13-3) with three hits and two RBIs, while Audrey Temple and Libby Duniven combined for four hits and three RBIs.
The Phoenix (4-11) were paced by veteran pitcher Emily Keene with three hits and two RBIs, while Megan Duval also belted out three hits and drove in a run. Kaylee Leclerc and Ally Acritelli also contributed with two hits apiece.
At Gardiner, senior catcher Morgan Carver recorded a double in a game that mostly featured walks as Gardiner grabbed a 12-0 victory over the Phoenix.
The Tigers (13-0) jumped out to an 8-0 lead in the second inning with seven runs in the inning. Gardiner took advantage of 12 walks along the way.
The Phoenix (2-11) posted five hits, but failed to plate a runner in the losing effort.
In baseball, the Phoenix lost 6-4, to Gardiner. It was Spruce Mountain’s 13th straight defeat after opening the season with a pair of wins.
The Tigers now hold a 10-3 record. They take the field next when they travel to Waterville. Gardiner will face a Panthers team coming off a 14-6 league win over MCI. The Panthers record now stands at 10-4.
The Phoenix finish the season hosting MCI.
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