Trevor Edwards tossed a complete-game on the mound and Julian Diamond drove in the game-winning run with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the sixth inning to lift Teddy Bear Pools to a 4-3 win over Longmeadow in the opening game of their best-of-three quarterfinal series in the Tri-County League men’s amateur baseball playoffs Tuesday night at G.T. Valiton Field in South Deerfield.
Edwards struck out four and walked four in seven innings to stake third-seeded Teddy Bear to a 1-0 lead in the series against No. 6 Longmeadow.
“We had enough offense to squeak it out,” offered Teddy Bear coach Harlan Bean. “Our defense was solid. Trevor was throwing strikes and they were putting it in play but our defense did the job again.”
Teddy Bear took a 2-0 lead in the first inning, when Chris Williams drove in a pair with a single.
Longmeadow scored three runs in the top of the third to take a 3-2 lead, but Teddy Bear tied it in the fifth when Tyler Charbonneau singled and scored on an error off a ball hit by Seth Leslie.
In the sixth, Tim Capuano reached on an error and took second on a David White single. The pair moved up on a sacrifice bunt by Andrew Sadowski, and after a Charbonneau walk loaded the bases with one out, Diamond’s deep fly ball to center field scored Capuano to put the Poolmen up, 4-3.
Longmeadow committed four errors on the night, and the squad will look to right the ship tonight for Game 2, scheduled to be played at 5:45 p.m. at Longmeadow High School. A Teddy Bear win will send the Poolmen into the semifinals, while a loss will force a winner-take-all Game 3 on Thursday back in South Deerfield.
Teddy Bear also had three players selected as All-League performers. Brad Bean was voted as the All-League center fielder for the second year in a row, while Leslie was the All-League shortstop and Williams was tabbed as the All-Laegue first baseman.
Leslie also took home the Matt Zieman Award, given to the top returning college player in the Tri-County League.