NORTON, Mass. – Stoughton scored runs in five of the six innings that they came to the plate that offensive onslaught carried the Black Knights to a 12-6 win over rival Sharon and secured a spot in the Division 2 South Finals.
The Black Knights pounded out 14 hits off three different Sharon players as ten different players scored runs for sixth-seeded Stoughton.
“I couldn’t be more proud of the guys,” Stoughton head coach Mike Armour said. “They’re great kids and they believe in one another. They’re attitudes are unbelievable and we’re looking to keep going.”
Senior captain Pat Jackman went 3-4 with two RBIs, two runs, and two stolen bases while junior Mike Gallagher was 2-3 with two RBIs and two runs scored. Pat Raeke was also 3-4 with two RBIs for Stoughton.
“One through nine we know we can all hit,” Gallagher said. “We always say hitting is contagious. It starts with Pat [Jackman] and it goes all the way through nine to the bench.”
Sharon jumped out to an early lead in the top of the first when leadoff hitter Brad Kaufman drew a walk and senior Jake Fishman singled to get aboard. Nate Pederson’s double into center scored them both to give the Eagles a 1-0 lead.
But Stoughton pulled one back in the bottom half after Jackman scored off a single from Gallagher. The Black Knights took their first lead in the bottom of the second when Jackman knocked in Kaleb Ballou (single) and Zach Gibb (reached on fielder’s choice) to make it 3-2 Stoughton.
Sharon once again jumped ahead in the top of the third as Michael Birschbach reached on a fielder’s choice and scored Fishman. When Birschbach took off for second on a steal attempt, an errant throw allowed Frank Sullivan (walk) to score to give the Eagles a 4-3 lead.
In the bottom half of the third, the Stoughton offense continued to push runs across the plate. With the bases loaded, Will McGrath hit a ground ball to Birschbach at second base, but junior’s throw was off target at home, allowing both Gallagher and Raeke to come across. Zach Gibb’s squeeze bunt scored sophomore Luke Butera from third for Stoughton’s third run to give the Black Knights a 6-4 lead.
Armour knows that no lead is safe in the postseason and will take all the runs that he can.
“It’s the tournament,” he said. “Anything can happen. We were up 7-0 yesterday against Greater New Bedford and it was looking like a cake walk and then all of a sudden it was 7-5. It’s big boy time and we aren’t going to take our foot off the pedal.”
The Black Knights tacked on three more runs in the bottom of the sixth as Jovani Pires, Raeke, and McGrath all came around to score. Sharon picked up two runs in the bottom of the seventh to round out the scoring.
Mike Dixon picked up the win for Stoughton, going 6.1 innings and giving up six runs. Sharon’s Kevin McLaughlin picked up the loss.
Stoughton will now play the winner of Nauset and Hingham in the D2 South Finals.
TOUGH END FOR SHARON
Sharon saw the high school baseball careers end for 16 seniors, but for three of them, it ended a little sooner.
Senior captains Nate Pederson and Brad Kaufman along with classmate Eric Lesser all left the game with injuries. Kaufman picked up a knock in the top of the first when he dove back to second base, leaving clutching his left shoulder. Pederson left in the bottom of the third after trying to dig out a ball at first, twisting his leg. Lesser, the shortstop, left the game with a hand injury.
Starting pitcher Jake Fishman also ends his career as an Eagle, but not before gaining the respect from opponents and his coach Joel Peckham.
“Jake Fishman is a hell of a player they have over there,” Stoughton head coach Mike Armour said. “I know he’s thrown a lot but it just shows his guts and his make up and try to just put this team on his back..”
Stoughton’s Mike Gallagher called Fishman “a great pitcher” and after Sharon’s win yesterday over Oliver Ames, Tigers skipper Leo Duggan called him the “best pitcher in the league.”
“One of the best,” Peckham said of where Fishman ranks among the players he has coached. “He’s a great pitcher and he does a lot of different things at the plate.”