The Husson University baseball team collected its seventh consecutive conference championship on Saturday after Brewer freshman Blake Littlefield tossed 3 1/3 innings of shutout relief to preserve a 4-3 win over Thomas College in the championship game at the Winkin Sports Complex in Bangor.
Husson will now advance to the NCAA Division III Tournament and will learn where it is going on Monday.
Husson took a 3-0 lead in the final before Thomas tied it in the top of the sixth on three singles, a walk and Jeremy Spencer’s two-run single. But Husson scored what proved to be the winning run in the bottom of the sixth on three walks and Colin Marshall’s run-scoring fielder’s choice.
Tournament Most Valuable Player Liam Kelley had a double and single for Husson as did fellow New Hampshire native and freshman Preston Libby. DJ Cagnina and Ajay Rychcik had two singles each for 20-21 Thomas.
Husson advanced to the title game with a 3-2 win over Vermont State University-Lyndon and an 11-4 triumph over SUNY Cobleskill.
Kelley, who went 7-for-12 with eight RBIs in the tourney, drove in six runs against SUNY Cobleskill with two doubles and a single. Kelley’s third homer of the season broke a 4-4 tie in a five-run seventh-inning rally and Ellsworth senior Hunter Curtis followed with a solo shot, his fourth.
Bangor junior Matt Holmes had a triple and three singles and Saco junior Henry Lausier contributed two doubles.
Ryan Lansing had two doubles and a single for SUNY Cobleskill and Jeffrey Gutierrez and Logan Firment each doubled and singles.
Waldo sophomore Noah Hurd picked up the win in relief, throwing three innings of four-hit, one-run ball with two walks and a strikeout.
In Husson’s opener, senior Cam Rendell’s sacrifice fly with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning delivered pinch-runner Andrew Cote with the winning run.
Cote was running for Trevor Poisson, who walked to open the inning.
Yates Emerson sacrificed Cote to second and Marshall reached on a fielder’s choice with Cote advancing to third.
Libby walked to load the bases before Rendell decided it with his sacrifice fly.
Kelley had two singles for Husson with Cesar Cisneros and Aaron LeFrancois having a pair of base hits each for Lyndon.
Husson sophomore Avery Lawrence from Portland and Lyndon starter Carlos Rodriguez each pitched eight innings of two-run baseball although the two runs off Rodriguez were unearned.
Lawrence allowed five hits with seven strikeouts and three walks while Rodriguez surrendered seven hits with eight strikeouts and three walks.
