OLD TOWN, Maine — It was Seniors Day for the Old Town High School softball team late Tuesday afternoon, and it was only fitting that a pair of Coyote seniors made it a memorable day.
Danica Brown’s single drove in Lexi Degrasse from third with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Coyotes their seventh win in their last eight games, 2-1, over arch-rival Orono in a well-played game between title contenders in their respective classes at Victory Field.
Class B North Old Town improved to 11-4 and will conclude its regular season against John Bapst of Bangor on Wednesday at the O’Keefe Softball Field on the Husson University campus in Bangor.
Starting center fielder Saige Evans was the only other senior on the Old Town roster, and all three were honored before the game.
Class C North Orono concluded its regular season at 11-5.
Degrasse lined a one-out single to left in the bottom of the ninth off Orono righty Jillian Severance and continued to second when left fielder Brylee McCollett momentarily bobbled the ball.
Degrasse said she hit an inside pitch for her base hit, and she had been struggling with inside pitches.
“So I’m glad I could capitalize on it. It felt amazing,” said Degrasse.
She moved to third on a wild pitch and scored when Brown grounded a sharp single to left.
“It was a perfect ending to a great day,” said Brown, who drove in both Old Town runs. “I knew a solid base hit was going to score her so I just went up there and did my thing and it came out in our favor.”
First baseman Brown had made an important defensive play in the top half of the ninth when she dove to her right to knock down a Kelsey McCrum grounder and threw to second baseman Degrasse at first for the out. McCrum had led off the inning.
The game featured a terrific pitcher’s duel between a pair of impressive sophomores.
Old Town’s Haley Sirois and Orono’s Severance each allowed just six hits.
Sirois struck out 12 and walked four while throwing 136 pitches, 85 for strikes. The only run off her was unearned.
Orono had baserunners in every inning but the sixth and the eighth but Sirois held the Red Riots to only three hits in 16 at-bats with runners on base.
“It was stressful, but I wanted to pull through for my team,” said Sirois.
“She pitched a heckuva’ game,” said Degrasse.
Severance, who had struck out 16 Coyotes in a three-hit 6-3 win on May 1, struck out 13 and walked two while throwing 138 pitches, of which 88 were strikes.
Old Town took the lead with a run in the fourth when Natalie Fournier walked, stole second, moved to third on a wild pitch and, after Degrasse walked and continued to run to second, scored on Brown’s grounder to third.
Orono shortstop Emma LaBelle prevented the Coyotes from expanding the lead with an exceptional play on Brianna Trimm’s grounder as she ranged far to her left to snag the ball and then make an accurate running throw to first.
The Red Riots tied it in dramatic fashion in the top of the seventh.
McCollett drew a one-out walk and was safe at second when Old Town shortstop Ava Brasslett dropped second baseman Degrasse’s throw for a forceout at second on Sophia Pitt’s grounder.
Emma LaBelle reached on a fielder’s choice and stole second and Andrea Crocker tied the game with a sharply-hit infield single to the shortstop hole.
Brasslett prevented the potential go-ahead run from scoring by lunging far to her right to keep Crocker’s single in the infield.
“We had a hard time punching them through when we had runners in scoring position but (the girls) didn’t let up,” said Orono coach Kristen Espling. “ They kept battling and persevered in that seventh inning to tie it up. It was the bottom of our lineup setting the table so the top could punch through.
“This group had grown a lot over the season. We lost but it was a really good fight all the way to the end and that’s good for us going into playoffs,” added Espling.
The Orono coach also said Severance pitched a “great game. She came at all of their hitters. We all did a nice job today. It was an awesome game.”
Brown had a double to go with her single and Sirois had a pair of base hits for Old Town.
LaBelle and Crocker had two singles each for Orono.
