East Hampton Reaches Class S Title Game

The game had unfolded as so many have this season for East Hampton.

Al Iannone had pitched a gem, and on the strength of a big inning offensively, the Bellringers headed to the seventh inning with a lead. So, coach Scott Wosleger did what he has done so often and would undoubtedly do again if presented with the same opportunity, he brought in Marvin Gorgas to close the game.

However, the freshman righthander, who has been nothing short of sensational this season and a big reason for the Bellringers’ success, proved, at least on this day, to be a little less automatic and a lot more human.

Maybe it was the heat, maybe nerves, maybe it just wasn’t his day, but one thing was certain, the Marvelous one would be finishing the game. It was his to win or lose.

So, as Windsor Locks closed a 5-1 deficit to 5-3 with one out, then loaded the bases, the pressure couldn’t have been greater, the stakes not much higher.

Having taken one trip to the mound already, Wosleger was stuck on the sideline. Another trip would mean taking his pitcher out and that wasn’t happening. So, it fell to the upperclassmen in the infield, Iannone, Spencer Daly and the rest, to settle their teammate down.

Maybe it helped, maybe not, but after an “interesting” conversation on the mound, Gorgas reached down deep and found that special something that makes him as good as he is and which enabled him to record the two biggest strikeouts of his season and East Hampton’s. Game over.

“He stepped up,” Wosleger said. “Even though they were rallying, even though we were concerned on the bench over here, we knew that with each batter that went by, we knew we’d be able to handle the bottom of their order.”

Amid a sun-drenched Muzzy Field in Bristol, the Bellringers had to sweat out a 5-3 victory over Windsor Locks on Tuesday in a Class S semifinal game. East Hampton, the No. 2 seed, will play No. 1 seed East Catholic for the championship on Saturday at 3:30 p.m., also at Muzzy Field. East Catholic defeated Wamogo 7-6 in 11 innings.

After East Hampton (21-4) fell behind 1-0 in the first inning, the game settled into a pitcher’s duel.

Iannone, perhaps making his final high school start as a pitcher, allowed four hits over six innings. The senior also had to deal with some pressure as the game wore on … keeping Windsor Locks (18-5) from adding to its lead.

The reason? Chuck Vogt. The senior righthander held East Hampton scoreless for the first four innings, allowing three hits.

“It puts a lot of pressure on the pitcher,” Iannone said. “I was getting nervous but I knew we’d come around sooner or later.

It was later, but no one is complaining.

“I knew [Vogt] was going to be pretty challenging for us, but at the same time I knew if we pitched and played a little defense, and we did early enough when Al kept us in the game, I figured we could get to him,” Wosleger said. “The one thing about our group is they’re not afraid of anything.

“Al kept us in it. He kept us in it. He did what he’s done all year.”

In the fifth, Brian Roberson got the long-awaited rally started with a single to right center. Austin Shumbo then came up in a sacrifice situation. Shumbo got the bunt down and Vogt fielded it, but instead of getting the sure out at first, he threw the ball into center field trying to get Ryan Massie, who was pinch running for Roberson, at second.

With two on and no outs, the table was set for a big inning and the Bellringers delivered.

Nate Heroux stepped up and as he did against Old Lyme, came up with a big hit. Heroux laced a double just inside the left field foul line to score two runs for a 2-1 lead.

It is the second straight game Heroux has been in the middle of big innings.

“It feels fantastic,” Heroux said. “It’s tournament time, you got to step up.”

Said Wosleger: “Heroux, No. 5, is a player. We don’t have an easy out in our lineup.”

With two out, Adam Michaud, who was 2-for-4 and is 5-for-8 in the last two games, doubled home Heroux. Gorgas followed with a single and Iannone brought Michaud in with a single to make the score, 4-1.

“The last couple of games I’ve been getting hits and I haven’t been thinking too much, Michaud said. “In these games I’m just like, ‘Let’s go for a base hit, I’ll do the team good if I’m on base.’ It’s been working.”

Michaud also has been playing solid defense, too. The third baseman had five assists and two put outs, including a leaping grab to his right of a line drive in the fifth inning.

“I saw the ball go up and I said I am not letting this ball go down,” Michaud said. “I just struck out looking so I was mad at myself and I said ‘I’m just going to make up for it with my glove.’ I got that line drive … I just saw it in.”

Being kept busy at third doesn’t faze him.

“I just take it one ground ball at a time,” he said.

Joe Tuxbury had a two-out RBI single in the sixth to give East Hampton a 5-1 lead.

 “I thought if we were patient enough and we have guys who are courageous at the plate, we’d be OK,” Wosleger said. “I knew it was just a matter of getting a couple of big hits in a couple of big spots and if we didn’t, then it wasn’t going to be our night.”

It was, however, and the five runs would be enough for East Hampton’s ninth consecutive victory while improving Iannone’s record to 11-0 on the season.

“I’ll probably think about that after the season’s over when I have time to rewind everything,” Iannone said. “It feels great.”

Though the Class S title game is next, Wosleger does not foresee doing anything differently than he has this postseason.

“We’ll probably go back to Michaud, who pitched in the quarters, and we’ll approach it the same way,” he said. “So, we’ll probably go Michaud, maybe Iannone if we need him in relief and we’ll go to the young guy [Gorgas] again if we need him.

Wosleger couldn’t put a finger on why Gorgas struggled. He thought he was squeezed some on balls and strikes – Gorgas walked three in the inning – and gave credit to the Raiders for putting good swings on the ball. There also was an infield error to start the inning, which didn’t help. What he didn’t think, though, was that the stage was too big for his prized freshman.

“He’s done it all year in very big spots,” Wosleger said. “The very first game of the season was a 4-3 game and while to us compared with this, it was nothing, to him as a freshman in eighth grade a few months before, that was a big spot.”

For the 2011 season, there is one more big spot to go.