BANGOR— The Mount View baseball team expected a tough challenge against top seed Bucksport in the C North final Tuesday night.
And the Mustangs got one.
Despite a strong performance from ace Noah Hurd, Mount View dropped a 4-2 decision. The Mustangs, who finished 14-6, were unable to overcome a four-run third inning.
No. 1 Bucksport (19-1) will play Lisbon (20-0) in the Class C final Saturday at 2 p.m. in Bangor.
“We knew we were the underdogs, and we knew we were coming here for a battle,” said Mount View coach Brandon Hurd. “I think we did that. We gave them a good game.”
Noah Hurd finished with 15 strikeouts through six innings.
“They couldn’t really hit the inside or high fastballs. A lot of them chased those,” Hurd said. “I kept bringing it the whole game.”
For Bucksport, pitcher Jake Guty earned the win as he struck out nine. Center fielder Jason Terrill and third-baseman Brandon Elder both finished 2-for-3 with a couple of singles. Elder finished with an RBI as well.
Unfortunately for Mount View, Hurd’s pitching clinic was simply not enough to extend the team’s season. The Mustangs finished with just three hits, while the Golden Bucks had five.
However, Mount View certainly had its scoring chances.
With no outs in the second inning, the Mustangs loaded the bases thanks to a pair of walks and a single from first baseman Dakota Harriman. However, Guty retired the next three Mustang batters to escape the jam.
In the third inning, Bucksport broke through. Gavyn Holyoke broke the scoreless game with an RBI bloop hit. Guty then followed with line-drive RBI double. Elder and Cam Rich added RBI singles in the inning.
Brandon Hurd quickly began to rally the Mustangs. “It’s time to wake up. It’s time to wake up,” he said to his players.
“I just felt like that was an important time to stay together, stay focused, and stay in the ballgame,” he said.
His rallying cry worked.
In the top of the fourth, Harriman and Cole Ripley both found themselves in scoring positions after a pair of walks and a wild pitch from Guty. Third-baseman Calvin Jewett hit an opposite-field single to plate two runs.
“Ultimately, we weathered the storm in that third and came back with two,” Coach Hurd said. “We made it a ballgame.”
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