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Division 2 Playoffs

B BHSBulldogDad10+ posts
Finally, the brackets! I'll start the ball rolling ...

Congrats to Sanborn for securing the last spot in the playoffs their first year moving up to D2. Lucky them. They get the honor of playing Portsmouth round 1.

Laconia v Kennett should be good. Laconia is home team with the 8 spot, but Kennett beat them twice the final 2 weeks of the season, 6-0 and 6-4. Should be fun. Either way, the winner gets Portsmouth. I'll go out on a limb here and pick Portsmouth to make it to the final 4. Gutsy call.

Goffstown is red hot, winning their last 12 games, including Bedford, Hanover, Hollis-Brookline, and Londonderry. Ryan Smith and Alex Wageling are very good pitchers. After starting out losing 3 of their first 5, they'll be tough to beat. It'll be interesting to see what St. Thomas does in the first round. If they can beat Oyster River with Scott Monroe, or whoever Coach Schoff considers his number 2, then St. Thomas has a real shot of making it to the ship with Jordan Bean starting against Goffstown in round 2 and whoever in the semi. Bean is one of the best all around players I've seen in the state at any level. His pitching, his bat, his glove at first. He's dangerous. I know you can't look past the first round, and he'll probably throw Bean against Oyster River, but I think their best chance of getting to the final 4 is with Bean in round 2 against Goffstown.

Bedford draws Merrimack Valley first round. Throw their 8-8 record out the window. I'm pretty sure with Travis Landry pitching MV is 6-0, and I think he's given up 6 runs all year! The Bedford players and coaches better not be taking this one for granted. MV pulled the upset of the year last year as the 13 seed beating Souhegan in the first round. MV hasn't scored many runs all year, so I guess their hoping for a real pitchers duel and some small ball. And I don't know if Coach Blahnik will be throwing Joe Maher or Lucas Olen round 1. They've both had an outstanding year.

Speaking of Souhegan, hands down the most talented team NOT to make it to the tournament. They started the year without Nick Hession or Matt Schagrin pitching, and Terry Dugdale went down half way through the season with a sore elbow. I thought for sure before the season started this team would make it to the final 4. This group of seniors has been outstanding for as long as I can remember. A real shame for those boys.

Hollis-Brookline surprised me by finishing 10-6 and landing the 5 seed. I think they only have 2 seniors on the team. I wonder how strong they would have been with Kenny Glover and Nick Barrett, 2 seniors who didn't play this year. It sure would be a lot easier getting to the final 4 with those 2 seniors in the line up. I know Barrett just wanted some down time before heading south for college. I wonder why Glover didn't play. He was a force. HB gets Coe-Brown first round, and Coe-Brown had a pretty tough schedule this year. That should be a good game.

Don't know much about Hanover v Con-Val or Lebanon v Pembroke.
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B BHSBulldogDad10+ posts
Two upsets in the first round today in D2. #14 Conval over #3 Hanover 7-4. and #11 Coe-Brown over #5 Hollis-Brookline 7-6. I'd love to hear about those 2 games.

Second round sets up a match up between #2 Goffstown and #7 St. Thomas. I wonder who pitched for St. Thomas today. They beat Oyster River 11-1. If Bean didn't pitch, it should be a great game at Goffstown.

I was at my son's game, obviously. Bedford beat Merrimack Valley 10-7. It wasn't over until the last out. MV's Travis Landry gave up 4 runs in the first inning but then settled down nicely. Joey Maher wasn't as sharp as usual, but its all good when you don't have your best stuff and you still come out with a win, especially in a single elimination tournament.
S SeacoastDad10+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by BHSBulldogDad:
Two upsets in the first round today in D2. #14 Conval over #3 Hanover 7-4. and #11 Coe-Brown over #5 Hollis-Brookline 7-6. I'd love to hear about those 2 games.

Second round sets up a match up between #2 Goffstown and #7 St. Thomas. I wonder who pitched for St. Thomas today. They beat Oyster River 11-1. If Bean didn't pitch, it should be a great game at Goffstown.


I was at my son's game, obviously. Bedford beat Merrimack Valley 10-7. It wasn't over until the last out. MV's Travis Landry gave up 4 runs in the first inning but then settled down nicely. Joey Maher wasn't as sharp as usual, but its all good when you don't have your best stuff and you still come out with a win, especially in a single elimination tournament.



Here's the writeup on the ST. Thomas /O.R. game:

http://www.fosters.com/apps/pb...39910/-1/FOSSPORTS03

Jordan Bean went 4 innings and threw 53 pitches, so it looks like he could be used in some fashion Saturday against Goffstown. Could be a great game if he's in there.

And here's the Portsmouth / Sanborn writeup.

http://www.fosters.com/apps/pb...39894/-1/FOSSPORTS03

Taylor also went four innings, so he could be used Saturday vs. Laconia if needed.

Best of luck to the remaining eight teams.
B BHSBulldogDad10+ posts
Thanks SeacoastDad. Good write ups on both games. No surprise every team went with their no. 1 pitcher. It is single elimination, no second chances. Portsmouth, St. Thomas, Goffstown, even Nashua North started Turner. Good coaching.

Goffstown v St. Thomas Saturday should be good. I assume Goffstown will go with Alex Wageling and St. Thomas will throw Scott Monroe? Sound right?

Interesting to note that Taylor pitched 4 innings, Bean pitched 4 innings, Maher pitched 5 innings. They have 12 (11 for Maher) innings of eligibility left. That means, assuming those guys don't pitch Saturday, they are all available to start both the semi and the ship, since those games are 8 or 9 days apart this year, not the same week as in the past. So each team's no. 2 pitcher only needs one win this year ... tomorrow. Bedford will start Lucas Olen Saturday against Coe-Brown. He's been awesome all year.
B BHSBulldogDad10+ posts
BAC,

I'm very surprised Hollis-Brookine didn't throw Mike Chase first round. HB was 10-6, Coe-Brown 8-8. And they played the each other the final week of the season with HB winning 4-1. That was too close a match up to try to get by with no. 2, knowing Coe-Brown would throw they're ace, unless the coach thinks they're about equal. I assume that was Renkin, correct? Well, hind sight is 20/20. He almost pulled it off. And I was wondering if STA would try something like that with Oyster River and save Bean for Goffstown, so I can't criticize anyone. HB was a good team, and young. I think they only had 2 seniors. They should be strong next year.
B BHSBulldogDad10+ posts
Most exciting come from behind victory you can have in a single elimination tournament. Coe-Brown went up 4-0 in the first and 5-0 in the second. Bedford got one back in the third on Zach Husband's base hit with the bases loaded, but then the lefty sophomore for Coe-Brown got the 3-4-5 hitters in order to leave the bases loaded. Great job by him, although I didn't get his name. Bedford got another run in the 4th to make it 5-2, but Coe-Brown came back with 2 more in their half of the 5th to make it 7-2. Bedford sophom0re Andy Lalonde hit a two strike pitch over the fence in right center field for a 3 run homer to make it 7-5 in the bottom of the 5th. In the bottom of the 6th Nate Harrington leads off with a double, Mike Skilton executes a sec bunt to move him to third (still down 2 runs 7-5), and Zach Husband hits a sac fly to make it 7-6. In the bottom of the 7th Ryan Gancarz gets a one out single and with 2 outs, a 2-2 count, senior catcher Justin Walsh fouls off a couple pitches and then hits a walk off 2 run homer to straight away center for his first ever high school home run! AMAZING!

A big shout out to the Coe Brown team. They are very good. I felt bad for them, but they have nothing to hang their heads about. They played hard, came out swinging, and played a great game.
S SeacoastDad10+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by BHSBulldogDad:
Most exciting come from behind victory you can have in a single elimination tournament. Coe-Brown went up 4-0 in the first and 5-0 in the second. Bedford got one back in the third on Zach Husband's base hit with the bases loaded, but then the lefty sophomore for Coe-Brown got the 3-4-5 hitters in order to leave the bases loaded. Great job by him, although I didn't get his name. Bedford got another run in the 4th to make it 5-2, but Coe-Brown came back with 2 more in their half of the 5th to make it 7-2. Bedford sophom0re Andy Lalonde hit a two strike pitch over the fence in right center field for a 3 run homer to make it 7-5 in the bottom of the 5th. In the bottom of the 6th Nate Harrington leads off with a double, Mike Skilton executes a sec bunt to move him to third (still down 2 runs 7-5), and Zach Husband hits a sac fly to make it 7-6. In the bottom of the 7th Ryan Gancarz gets a one out single and with 2 outs, a 2-2 count, senior catcher Justin Walsh fouls off a couple pitches and then hits a walk off 2 run homer to straight away center for his first ever high school home run! AMAZING!

A big shout out to the Coe Brown team. They are very good. I felt bad for them, but they have nothing to hang their heads about. They played hard, came out swinging, and played a great game.


Wow! Big hit on the big stage for Justin. Congrats to him. Should be an exciting semi-final, with a likely Maher-Taylor rematch in the BHS-PHS game, and STA looking to stay hot against Lebanon.

Here are the writeups. Note in the Portsmouth writeup that PHS graduation is friday, so there is a possibility that the game will be moved (perhaps to Thursday night?). B-Dad: Is BHS graduation on Saturday?


Portsmouth-Laconia:

http://www.fosters.com/apps/pb...59883/-1/FOSSPORTS03


STA-Goffstown and BHS-CB (both buried in the High School Roundup section):

http://www.fosters.com/apps/pb...59879/-1/FOSSPORTS03
B BHSBulldogDad10+ posts
SeacoastDad - Yes, Bedford graduation is Saturday at 10:00 am. So with Portsmouth graduation Friday, do you think they'll swap the Thursday and Friday games? Of course that would depend on whether St. Thomas or Lebanon have a graduation Friday. Who knows. Maybe they'll just play the game Saturday at 4:00, and not disrupt STA - Lebanon.

I just hope both teams play up to their potential. There are a lot of good ballplayers on both teams. It could be a great game, which is what everyone wants. Bedford has 6 seniors on this team. 5 of them made all state this year, the other one made it the 2 previous years, although not this year. 4 of them have been on varsity all 4 years since Bedford's inaugural season in 2008. They deserve to go out with their heads high, win or lose, this week or next.

Anyone out there have any thoughts on Lebanon. We never hear much about them, but they're always a solid team. Final 4 again this year.
S SeacoastDad10+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by BHSBulldogDad:
SeacoastDad - Yes, Bedford graduation is Saturday at 10:00 am. So with Portsmouth graduation Friday, do you think they'll swap the Thursday and Friday games? Of course that would depend on whether St. Thomas or Lebanon have a graduation Friday. Who knows. Maybe they'll just play the game Saturday at 4:00, and not disrupt STA - Lebanon.

I just hope both teams play up to their potential. There are a lot of good ballplayers on both teams. It could be a great game, which is what everyone wants. Bedford has 6 seniors on this team. 5 of them made all state this year, the other one made it the 2 previous years, although not this year. 4 of them have been on varsity all 4 years since Bedford's inaugural season in 2008. They deserve to go out with their heads high, win or lose, this week or next.

Anyone out there have any thoughts on Lebanon. We never hear much about them, but they're always a solid team. Final 4 again this year.


B-Dad,

Good call on the Thursday-Friday switch. According to the schools' web sites, Lebanon's graduation is on Thursday, PHS on Friday, BHS on Saturday, and St. Thomas's is actually today. Seems like a no-brainer for the NHIAA, but we'll have to wait and see.

I agree with you -- hope it's a well-played game.
S SeacoastDad10+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by SeacoastDad:
quote:
Originally posted by BHSBulldogDad:
SeacoastDad - Yes, Bedford graduation is Saturday at 10:00 am. So with Portsmouth graduation Friday, do you think they'll swap the Thursday and Friday games? Of course that would depend on whether St. Thomas or Lebanon have a graduation Friday. Who knows. Maybe they'll just play the game Saturday at 4:00, and not disrupt STA - Lebanon.

I just hope both teams play up to their potential. There are a lot of good ballplayers on both teams. It could be a great game, which is what everyone wants. Bedford has 6 seniors on this team. 5 of them made all state this year, the other one made it the 2 previous years, although not this year. 4 of them have been on varsity all 4 years since Bedford's inaugural season in 2008. They deserve to go out with their heads high, win or lose, this week or next.

Anyone out there have any thoughts on Lebanon. We never hear much about them, but they're always a solid team. Final 4 again this year.


B-Dad,

Good call on the Thursday-Friday switch. According to the schools' web sites, Lebanon's graduation is on Thursday, PHS on Friday, BHS on Saturday, and St. Thomas's is actually today. Seems like a no-brainer for the NHIAA, but we'll have to wait and see.

I agree with you -- hope it's a well-played game.


The Bedford-Portsmouth game has been rescheduled to Thursday at 3:30pm, and the STA-Lebanon game has been rescheduled to Friday at 4:00pm. Both games are at Memorial Field in Concord.
K kpc8910+ posts
Just got in from the Leb./STA game... crazy one. Saints win 8-6 in 9inn. Monroe and Bean combine on the pitching for STA. The pitcher for Lebanon went the entire 9! Must have thrown 160 pitches min. Had thrown 90 through 5 inn. This game had a little of everything.... even a sawed off aluminum bat! One comment I have is that getting a bunt down would have made the outcome sooner and maybe different. It is a lost art.
Last edited by kpc89
B BHSBulldogDad10+ posts
Well said, MaccaNH. The difference was defense. Pitching and defense wins championships, and Bedford's defense was not good enough to get to the championship game. Especially the inability to cover the bunt. Portsmouth scored 2 runs in the 5th, primarily on 3 straight bunts after getting the leadoff man on, and Bedford could not handle any of them.

Porstmouth, on the other hand, played excellent defense, making every play, including several very difficult chances. My son thinks Keegan Taylor is the toughest pitcher he's ever faced, and he's faced a lot of good pitchers between varsity, legion, and GSBA showcase (2 years each). That's quite a compliment to Keegan. Portsmouth also has very good plate discipline, and their well coached.

It's still hard for me to understand how any team could win 82 straight games and be undefeated over a 4 year spread, but they've certainly earned it. Good luck to them and St. Thomas next Saturday.
LS LJ Sandwich100+ posts
Well said BHS Dad...It's the first time I've sat stadium level and seen the true movement of Keegan's pitches. The kid is polished, has an MLB curveball, and is ALWAYS close enough to the strikezone to get a call. I saw many Bedford batters knees buckled...and those kids are great hitters. I know STA has Jordan Bean, whom I've never seen pitch, but the Clippers make no mistakes on D whatsoever. The SS was amazing today. You sometimes have to tip your cap to greatness.

As an SHS parent, I don't look forward to facing either of these two great programs next year.
S SeacoastDad10+ posts
Time changes for Saturday's championship games, per the NHIAA web site:

D-III Somersworth (1) vs Campbell (3) 10:00am

D-I Nashua North (1) vs Concord (6) 2:15pm Time change due to graduations with both schools

D-IV Sunapee (1) vs Colebrook (2) 5:15pm This game will start immediately following the 2:15pm game

D-II Portsmouth (1) vs St. Thomas Aquinas (7) 8:15pm This game will start immediately following the 5:15pm game

Best of luck to all teams.
CC Coach Curt100+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by SMAN14:
Wish I hadn't already sent the schedule out and encouraged coaches to attend. What's up NHIAA, just found out that kids are graduating?


Your right Shawn,

You would think they could learn from their mistakes. The same thing happened to us last year. We were supposed to play the 1:00 game and found out Friday afternoon that we were playing at 10:00, which stinks, because no one gets up that early for a game, and this year we are playing at 10:00 again. They need to pick a date, and let all area high schools know not to schedule graduation for that day. How hard is it?

Coach Curt
CC Coach Curt100+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by SMAN14:
I'm going to the Duck Boat Parade, see you guys by the end of game 2. Let me know how Josh J pitches.

You should have seen Josh in the semi final game. Wow, Brody called a great game and Josh exicuted all his pitches. Mike Campo was there I think, ask him about it.
Quote from the NH sports page "Winnisquam coach Fred Caruso called Jacques, who baffled Bears hitters with off-beat offerings all afternoon "an upper-echelon pitcher" in the division and, in fact, the entire state."

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