Stoughton High Baseball Pays Tribute to Seniors in Final Game of Season

The last time Stoughton and Mansfield met the game ended with the Hornets escaping with a , with Stoughton’s Will McGrath getting thrown out on a near-perfect relay throw at home, just a few feet from tying the game at three.

Heading into the final inning of Friday’s contest between these two baseball teams, Mansfield led 6-2 and it didn’t appear as if there would be any dramatics—but alas there were.

Stoughton scored three runs off Mansfield reliever Craig Mallett, but stranded the tying run at second base, losing 6-5.

The game featured the third place team from the Davenport Division (Stoughton) hosting the third place team from the Kelly-Rex Division (Mansfield) in a Hockomock League Crossover game.

With the loss, Stoughton ends the season with a 7-13 record. Mansfield, postseason tournament bound, wraps up the regular season at 12-8.

“Obviously our goal was to make the tournament. Not meeting that goal hurts,” Stoughton coach Mike Armour said, “but as evidenced by the fight these guys had right to the end of the game…the kids fought, the kids stayed together.”

“It’s a long season and these guys stuck it out the whole way, stuck together and I’m proud of the way they did that and I’m definitely looking forward to next year and getting back at it.”

For Mansfield coach Tim Graham, his team did “enough to get by.”

“I think the end of the game exemplifies our whole season—just making it more difficult than it needs to be,” Graham said.

Mansfield got on the board first in the top of the first inning. Steve Nagle led off the game with a walk and was driven home on a single from Bobby Brunelle.

The Hornets added three more runs in the second to build a 4-0 lead. Nagle had a 2-run triple, scoring Adam Blake and Matt Harris. Nagle later came around to score on an error.

Stoughton’s senior co-captain, Adam Kenney, settled down, needing just 19 pitches to get through the third and fourth innings. The lefty pitched into the sixth inning.

Meanwhile, Stoughton’s offense then came alive in the third against Mansfield senior starter Tom Brady. A Pat Jackman double drove in Kevin Linehan and Eric McPherson then drove in Jackman to cut the deficit to 4-2.

But Mansfield responded with two more runs in the top of the fifth. The Hornets loaded the bases with no outs to start the inning, with Nagle and Brunelle eventually scoring.

Stoughton did not capitalize on some scoring opportunities in the fourth through sixth innings. Mike Connelly was trying to leg-out a triple in the fourth, but was thrown out at third on a close call. Mike Gallagher was stranded at second in the fifth and Eric McPherson was stranded at third in the sixth inning, after belting a triple to deep centerfield.

But trailing by four in the bottom of the seventh, Stoughton did not go down quietly.

After pitching the first six innings, Brady was relieved by Mallett. Kenny Boykin singled with one out and came around to score on Andrew Cull’s triple. Gallagher then reached on an infield single scoring Cull; Pat Raeke reached when Michael Farrell couldn’t come up with the ball in leftfield, putting runners on second and third with one out. McGrath hit a sacrifice fly to bring Gallagher home to bring the Black Knights within one.

But, Mallett was able to get the final out, retiring Cam Colson on a fly ball.

Armour paid tribute to his six seniors in this game (Kenney, Linehan, McPherson, Sean O’Malley, Atticus Rentsch and Luca Venterosa) starting all six and pulling each player at various points in the game in the middle of an inning so they could walk off the field and be congratulated by their teammates.

“O’Malley’s played varsity since he was a sophomore; Adam Kenney really seemed to blossom as a pitcher…had a great changeup and curve and kept hitters off balance this year; Eric blossomed into an unbelievable centerfielder for us—really had a great year,” Armour said. 

“Atticus and Luca [patrolled] the corners in the outfield; Linehan not only played a little infield, but really [was] a great core guy for us.”

Led by current junior Alex Fernandes, sophomores Connelly, Jackman and McGrath, and Gallagher, a freshman, the team returns a youthful and talented core next season. Frankie Morris, Brian Kaplan, Andrew Cull, Cam Colson, Jamie Connors, Kenny Boykin and Pat Raeke, also contributed to the team this season.

“We have some great young players coming back,” Armour said. “Those guys are serious about baseball; they want to get better and I have no doubt we’ll be ready to battle next year.”