WATERVILLE — When asked what his best pitch was in Tuesday’s Class B North preliminary round baseball playoff game, Waterville’s Cody Pellerin smiled.
“Anything. Fastball, curve, they were both working well,” Pellerin said. “Fastball was a little more accurate, but my curve made them swing.”
Against Foxcroft Academy on Tuesday afternoon, Pellerin was in complete control. The junior righty gave up just four hits, with only one of those leaving the infield, while striking out 10 and walking two in a complete game 3-0 win.
No. 8 Waterville, now 13-4, will play at No. 1 Old Town (13-3) on Thursday. No. 9 Foxcroft ends the season at 10-7.
The Ponies never threatened to score, with no runner reaching third base. Foxcroft’s best chance to push across a run came in the top of the sixth inning, when Ryan Vienneau and Billy Brock each singled, but Vienneau was thrown out at second after getting picked off, and Brock was thrown out at second on a steal attempt to end the inning.
“That was huge. We were making some (errors), but they weren’t at a costly time. That got me out of the inning and kept my pitch count down,” Pellerin said.
The Ponies then went down in order in the seventh, with Pellerin getting back-to-back looking strikeouts to end the game.
“Cody was right on. He has been the last couple outings. He threw a heck of game at Oceanside the other day (a 2-1 Waterville win). He’s been on most of the year. When his curveball’s going, he’s pretty tough to hit,” Waterville coach Dennis Martin said.
“(Pellerin) had a good breaking ball, and he threw it in all counts, and he threw it for strikes. It kept our guys off balance,” Foxcroft coach Nick Miller said.
The Purple Panthers got all the offense they needed in the first inning. Justin Wentworth, Andrew Roderigue and Pellerin hit consecutive singles to open the game. After Wentworth was caught stealing, Pellerin’s hit scored Roderigue. After Cam Denis walked, Chay Phelps hit a sacrifice fly to right field to score Pellerin and give Waterville a 2-0 lead.
Waterville had chances to add to its lead, but stranded a runner at third base in the third and fourth innings. The Panthers added a run in the bottom of the fifth, when Denis hit a flare single into left field, scoring Roderigue from third.
“We just hung around. We’d always get the guys with two out, man on third, and we couldn’t get that two out hit for a while to open it up,” Martin said.
After a shaky first inning, Foxcroft starter Ryan Laffin settled down. Laffin went the distance, allowing six hits with four walks and three strikeouts.
“They have kids who hit the ball hard at the top of the order, and you saw that in the first inning. (Laffin) gave them a little bit more breaking stuff for their one through four (hitters) from there on out,” Miller said.
Wentworth had a pair of hits for Waterville, including a double.
Travis Lazarczyk — 861-9242
tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com
Twitter: @TLazarczykMTM
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