AUBURN — Rogers Post has lived on the edge throughout this American Legion Zone 2 baseball season.

Walks have been a problem for Rogers Post pitchers, and Monday against seventh-seeded Highland Green, 10 free passes nearly derailed the second-seeded squad in a quarterfinal at Auburn Suburban Field.

Rogers Post coach Dave Jordan looked to Tyler Blanchard in the ninth, and the righty turned in just the second 1-2-3 frame of the nine-inning contest as Rogers (16-3) advanced to Tuesday’s home semifinal with a 6-4 win and will host No. 3 Bessey Motors, which had a 4-0 victor over Locke Mills on Monday.

For Highland Green (6-13), the young squad battled all season, especially in its three games with Rogers Post, falling in extra innings in Topsham and dropping an 8-4 error-filled contest six days earlier.

This time around, Bob Neron’s squad used an RBI double from Cam Cox, a run-scoring base hit by Kaileb Hawkes and a wild pitch to make things interesting late.

“What makes me feel good about going into the offseason is that I see us coming full circle,” said Neron. “We didn’t get runners in sometimes, but a lot of clubs roll over and die when down 6-1 in the eighth inning.”

“We knew they would make a run and they did, just a credit to Coach Neron and those hard-nosed guys over there,” said Jordan.

The early going turned into a pitcher’s duel between Highland Green hurler Alex Larson and Rogers’ right-hander Jarod Norcross-Plourde, who struck out the side in the first inning and escaped two two-on, one-out jams, and a bases-loaded fix in the sixth when Highland Green scored its lone run on a single by Harper Moutal that scored Larson.

Meanwhile, Larson held Rogers Post scoreless through three innings and survived a 24-pitch fourth frame, allowing just one run (sacrifice fly by Grant Hartley). The pitch count was Larson’s main enemy, as he tossed 80 pitches through four and finished with 126 overall in his 5 2/3 innings of work.

“He had a lot of three-ball counts early in the game, but he said he had all winter to rest of up and I kept (him) in there,” said Neron of Larson.

Rogers Post struck for two runs in the fifth, both coming on a two-run single by Drew Lashua, who was 3-for-4 with a double and a run scored.

A three-run sixth ended Larson’s day, the big blows coming on Hartley’s long solo blast to right-center field and a two-run base-knock by Blanchard (3-for-4, run, two RBIs) off reliever Moutal (2 1/3, two hits, one strikeout, one walk).

“The difference between them and us right now is when they need that clutch hit, they get it and we don’t,” said Neron.

“Our guys battled a lot and fought some balls off,” said Jordan. “Grant hit the ball hard. But Larson pitched a great game and didn’t miss a lot.”

“I saw the pitch and tried to put a good swing on it,” said Hartley. “We were able to sit on a couple pitches, and I think we got lucky a couple times. We didn’t sense that (Larson) was tired. He looked pretty good to me.”

Norcross-Plourde went the first six innings, striking out eight and walking seven.

Lew Jensen relieved, and after escaping a jam in the seventh and stranding two Duck runners, ran into more trouble in the eighth. With two outs, Garrett Moody reached on an error and Hunter Lohr walked. Cox lined a double inside the left-field line, and Hawkes blooped a single to right. Cox later scored on Jensen’s wild pitch to get the visitors to 6-4.

But Jensen ended the frame with a bases-loaded strikeout, and then watched Blanchard pick up the save in the ninth.

“We need to clean up our charitable ways with the walks, and sometimes today we got off the track again,” said Jordan of the 10 walks and two errors that led to four unearned runs against his club.

Neron has a solid group of youngsters slated to return, including the soon-to-be Mt. Ararat sophomore Lohr, who was 2-for-3, with a walk and a run. He also made two solid catches in center field.

“I learned that hard work is the only thing that you need,” Lohr said. “The outcome today could have been better, but we have a strong group of players that will be here for a while. I think we’re going to be good.”

“There are a lot of good kids coming up, and maybe it is our time now,” Neron said. “We have a lot of good, hard-working kids. They will be working out on their own in January, getting ready for next season.”

Larson, who is slated to return to play for Highland Green next year, struck out eight, walked two and permitted eight hits.

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