Knights lead championship series
The New Lowell Knights have taken a 3-1 series lead over the Bolton Brewers winning Game 3, 4-1 and Game 4, 4-3 on the weekend in the North Dufferin Baseball League championship.
Saturday’s contest, played in Bolton, started with the Brewers plating a run in the first inning, but the Knights scored two in the third followed by a run in each of the fourth and fifth frames to win the game.
Brandon Norrie threw a gem for the Knights and was backed by teammates with solid defensive plays that restricted the Brewers offense.
The Brewers were limited to three singles from Mike Wallace, Carter Burnside and Aaron Dzib.
The Knights’ Steve Bowman, Brett Elliott, and Chris Greer hit doubles, singles from Norrie and Steve Baldry and a pair of singles from veteran Todd Patton.
Trent Barwick pitched all seven innings for the Brewers giving up four runs on seven hits, two walks and had two strikeouts.
Norrie also pitched all seven for the Knights, allowing one run on three hits, three walks, one hit batter, and five strikeouts.
Game 4 on Sunday in New Lowell opened with a three-run inning for the Knights as leadoff batter Steve Bowman hit a homer on the first pitch followed by a Patton two-run shot in the cleanup spot.
Brewers’ hurler Dzib kept the New Lowell bats at bay for the remainder of the game allowing his battery mates to score two runs in the fifth and a single in the sixth to tie the game.
With the game still tied after seven innings, the teams entered extra innings where the Knights capitalized on an errant throw to first base in a double play attempt, scoring Greer from third base to walk it off in the bottom of the ninth.
Bolton managed seven hits including a double and two singles from Brett Chater, two singles from Stephen Warden, and singles from Nathan Drury and Wallace.
Bowman led the Knights with a homer and two singles, Patton with his home run, Chris Rettie and Greer hitting two singles, and two more hits from Jake Nicholson and Baldry.
New Lowell started ace Nick Hodgson who pitched nine innings, giving up three runs on seven hits, three walks, hit one batter, and had two strikeouts.
Dzib pitched eight innings for the Brewers, giving up three runs on nine hits, one walk and five strikeouts.
The winning run was charged to Chater who entered in the eighth frame in relief. He gave up one hit, one walk and had one strikeout.
The next game is Saturday in New Lowell, where the Knights can claim a second-straight title. A Brewers win forces Game 6 on Sunday in Bolton followed by a Game 7 double-header if required.
