Written by Memorial and Goffstown amassed 17 total runs on 23 total hits en route to a thrilling first round game at Gill Stadium. Goffstown trailed 5-1 entering the 6th inning before taking a lead, losing it, and then winning the game, 9-8 in 8 innings. It was an exciting game between two teams that each finished the regular season with 10-8 records.
Memorial and Goffstown already played each other just 13 days ago, and Memorial pulled out a 5-4 win in the 7th inning at Lion’s Field in Goffstown. Then, as fate would have it, Memorial earned the #8 seed and Goffstown grabbed the #9 seed, ensuring a first round rematch. Just as they did in Goffstown, the Crusaders jumped on the Grizzlies with 3 runs in the first inning. Goffstown scored first though. Clay Campbell walked with one out before Bob Doherty singled to right field. Will Soucy followed with a ground ball single to left field that scored Campbell from second base.
Connor Hujsak pitching with a 1-0 lead, was hit hard in the bottom of the inning. Ryan Cardow hit a soft single to left field, leading off. Jack Fitzgerald stayed back on a breaking ball and ripped a single to center field to score Cardow. Then Colin Brodeur crushed a 1-0 pitch over Doherty’s head in left field that hopped off of the fence for an RBI triple. Memorial starting pitcher, Conner Erickson, grounded out to the right side with an RBI that scored Brodeur from third base, taking a 3-1 lead.
Both pitchers cruised through the second inning, a combined, 6 up, 6 down. Goffstown also went pretty quietly in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th innings, getting 2 singles and a walk over those three innings. Memorial was making more noise offensively. In the 3rd, they left 2 runners on base after a Fitzgerald single and a walk to Brodeur before Erickson flied out to right to end it. In the 4th inning Manchester Memorial got a single from Jameson Reilly and a walk to Colbe Moul but a sacrifice bunt attempt turned into a fielder’s choice when Hujsak pounced on the bunt and fired to Clay Campbell to get the lead runner, and the next two batters grounded out and struck out to end the threat.
Grizzlies gather before the game at Gill Stadium this afternoon.
Memorial added to their lead in the 5th inning when Taylor Fournier reached on a throwing error by Clay Campbell on a play that certainly looked like Colin Burke held the ball and the bag at first base before leaving the bag. Fitzgerald singled again for his third hit of the game. Colin Brodeur bounced into a fielder’s choice, leaving runners at first and third. Erickson knocked in a run with a single to right center field, scoring Fournier. Brodeur scored moments later on a wild pitch, giving the #8 seed a 5-1 lead. Even so, Memorial stranded 6 runners over the middle three innings.
Then, from out of seemingly nowhere, the Grizzlies mounted a massive comeback in the top of the 6th inning. Through 5 innings, they had 1 run on 4 hits, all singles, and one of those was a pop up. Bob Doherty led off with an infield single to deep shortstop. After a flyout, Jared Heidenreich singled through the hole into right field. Myles Green dropped a single inside the right field line to score Doherty, making it 5-2. Liam Kilbreth singled to center field on an 0-1 pitch to score Heidenreich. After a pop out for the second out of the inning, Ben Dodge came to the plate after tapping back to the mound twice in the game. Dodge got behind 0-1 and then took a helpless swing at a pitch to fall behind, 0-2. On the next pitch, Dodge rocked a line drive over Fournier’s head in center field for a 2-out, 2-run triple to tie the game at 5-5. Memorial pulled Erickson from the hill and he traded places with Jack Fitzgerald at first base. Four pitches later, that move mattered when Connor Hujsak hit a slow bouncing ball to shortstop and beat the throw from Ryan Cardow which allowed Dodge to score from third base. On the play Erickson, now at first base, threw the ball back towards the mound and on the ground. The throw wasn’t close to any teammates and on the turf, the ball scooted across and through the infield, and eventually out of play. Hujsak who had just beat the throw to first base, took off and made it all the way to third base on the Erickson error. Clay Campbell singled up the middle and Hujsak scored easily. Then Doherty worked the count to 3-2 before demolishing a pitch that short-hopped the left field fence and scored Campbell from first base who was running on the pitch. Goffstown suddenly led 8-5 after the top of the 6th inning.
Nearly as quickly as I was thinking the Goffstown needed to keep Memorial from scoring after such a huge inning, Hujsak walked number nine hitter, Peter Gray, and the leadoff man, Cardow to start the inning. Taylor Fournier singled sharply to left field and loaded the bases with nobody out. Hujsak got Fitzgerald on strikes but one pitch was a wild one that allowed Gray to score. Then Brodeur bounced to shortstop behind the mound and Cardow scored. Goffstown led 8-7 with one inning to play.
The Grizzlies went down 1-2-3 in the 7th inning. Clay Campbell came in to pitch for Goffstown trying to get the save. Manchester Memorial had other ideas though. On the first three pitches of the 7th inning, Jameson Reilly crushed a triple to center field when Will Soucy took a straight line toward the gap on a ball that got over his head. Even with a better route, I am not sure he would have caught the drive. Connor Thibault came in to run for Reilly at third base. On the next pitch Colbe Moul hit a laser shot to left center field but Doherty snagged it for the out. Thibault never tagged on the shot and remained at third. On the very next pitch, Stephen Dunham stung a ball to deep center that Will Soucy got behind and caught. Thibault tagged this time, and scored to tie the game at 8-8. Three pitches, three shots, and one game-tying run for the Crusaders. Campbell hit Peter Gray with a pitch that nobody but the umpire seemed to think hit him. Bryce Cote hit for Cardow and flied out to center field to end the threat.
The starting pitchers were no longer around as the game moved to the 8th inning. Hujsak pitched 6 innings and allowed 7 runs (5 earned) while striking out 7 and allowing 8 hits. He also walked 4 batters and hit another one. On the other side, Conner Erickson pitched 5 2/3 innings in total, but over the first 5 innings he cruised, allowing 4 hits and 1 run. It was the 2/3 of an inning in the 6th that did him in. In the 6th inning he allowed 5 runs on 5 hits. His final line was 5 2/3 innings, 9 hits, 6 runs, 3 strikeouts and a pair of walks. Jack Fitzgerald pitched 1 2/3 innings giving up 3 runs on 4 hits with 1 strikeout.
In the 8th inning, Colin Burke grounded out to start the inning. Ben Dodge roped a single to center field to knock Fitzgerald from the mound. Colin Brodeur came on and jammed Connor Hujsak with a pitched that he muscled to right field on an arching short fly ball. Peter Gray made the split second choice and dove toward the sinking flyball. The ball hit the ground before Gray got there and skipped by him and all the way to the right field fence. The speedy Dodge somehow tripped, or missed second base, or both. Dodge went back and tagged second base while Hujsak waited for him to recover. Dodge ultimately made it to third base while Hujsak had to settle for the bloop double. If Dodge hadn’t tripped, it is possible that Hujsak would have rounded the bases with an inside-the-park home run. 
With runners at second and third base, Campbell walked to load the bases. Bob Doherty bounced a 3-1 pitch towards the middle of the infield. Bryce Cote fielded the bounding ball and threw towards the plate. Dodge beat the throw to the plate and Tim Alley had to come off of the plate to snag the throw anyway. Dodge scored and made the score, 9-8. Soucy and Heidenreich popped out and struck out respectively, leaving the bases loaded.
Now it was up to Campbell to pitch a scoreless 8th inning against the 2-3-4 hitters for Memorial. But finally, the wacky game of ups and downs, back and forths, relented and Taylor Fournier flew out to Doherty in left field. Fitzgerald bounced out to Hujsak at shortstop. Colin Brodeur ended it with a fly out to left field. Campbell ended up blowing the save, but got the win. He pitched 2 innings and gave up one run on one hit and also hit a batter. Connor Hujsak had 3 hits and still hasn’t got his swing back yet. Campbell had a single and 2 walks. Doherty had 3 hits and 2 RBI’s. Myles Green had a pair of hits, and Ben Dodge had the biggest hit of the season in his 2 hits, 2 runs, and 2 RBI’s.
#9 Goffstown pulled the mild upset over #8 Manchester Memorial, 9-8 in 8 innings. Goffstown (11-8) will play on Saturday at 2 pm up at Memorial Field against the #1 Concord Crimson Tide (16-3).
In other action around Division I, #15 Dover scored 5 runs in the 8th inning and knocked off the #2 seed and defending champs, Exeter, 7-2. #10 Portsmouth gave up a 2-out, game-tying RBI double in the bottom of the 7th inning at #7 Keene, but scored in the 8th inning to earn the 2-1 upset win. That means that #15 Dover will travel to #10 Portsmouth in one quarterfinal. #4 Londonderry beat #13 Spaulding, 10-3, and they will host #5 Pinkerton who blasted #12 Windham, 10-0. #3 Bishop Guertin beat #14 Manchester Central, 6-2. BG will host #6 Bedford who got a grand slam from Avery Mosseau and solo shots from Zach Fletcher and Jared Neikam behind Trevor Anibal’s 6 shutout innings.
Birds Eye view of Memorial Field in Concord, NH. (From Google Maps)