PARIS — Bessey Motors never looked back after taking a first-inning lead, earning a 6-0 shutout win over Topsham Post 202 in an American Legion baseball game Tuesday at Oxford Hills Middle School.

Bessey Motors, which is made up mostly of Oxford Hills baseball players, plated two runs in bottom of the first without a hit. 

Two of the non-Oxford Hills players helped Bessey grab the early lead. Edward Little’s Aidan Gonzalez led off with a walk, and Lewiston’s Josh Murphy did the same.

Bessey Motors second baseman Brady Truman makes a diving stab at a line drive headed for the outfield and potentially extra bases during Tuesday's American Legion baseball game in Paris. Truman managed to knock the ball down and hold the batter to a single. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal

A balk moved the base runners to second and third, respectively.  Then a passed ball scored Gonzalez, and another balk on the next pitch scored Murphy, giving Bessey Motors a 2-0 lead.

“We had to scrape some runs off,” Bessey coach Riley Chickering said. “(Topsham’s Cody Cleaveland) pitched really well, so I was pleased that we were able to score as many runs as we did without getting a lot of hits.”

“Cody is just coming back to the game of baseball,” Topsham coach Christopher Hickman said. “He was on a scholarship up in New York to play soccer. … He has a funky windup anyway, so he wasn’t getting set like he should, and it cost us two runs.” 

Bessey Motors extended its lead in the third on a walk by Nick Binette, followed by two stolen bases and a passed ball. 

In the bottom of the fifth, a Gonzalez single scored another run, then Murphy single home Binette, pushing the lead to 5-0. 

Bessey Motors capped off its onslaught in the bottom of the sixth. Hunter Tardiff doubled to deep left, and Brady Truman drove him in with a hard-hit single, extending Bessey’s lead to 6-0. 

Each team finished with four hits.

Bessey Motors used four pitchers in the game. 

Murphy started the game and pitched four innings, allowing one hit and striking out eight. 

“I came out throwing strikes, which is one thing I’ve been struggling with the past couple weeks,” Murphy, who has committed to play at Division-I Bryant University, said. “My breaking ball was on, the infield did great, and the outfield did great.” 

Ethan Carter replaced Murphy and struck out three batters in the top of the fifth. Then Wyatt Knightly and Gonzalez each pitched an inning to close out the game. 

“We have so much depth in our pitching,” Murphy said. “We have kids that can go out and throw when they need to throw. They’re coming out and throwing strikes, which is really all you need to do with a good defense behind you.” 

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