Senior Night Smackdown

By Ray Curren
EAGLE TIMES STAFF
CLAREMONT- Winless Laconia came to Barnes Park Tuesday night hoping the Stevens baseball team might help it out a little. No such luck.

On Senior Night, the Cardinals played their most fundamentally sound game of the season, playing error-

free baseball in a comfortable 10-1 NHIAA Division II victory, their third straight win.

“You can’t give teams four and five outs per inning at this level and we were doing that earlier in the season, but we’re a totally different team right now,” Stevens coach Bill Bundy said. “We have to win out,so this was just one more step.”

Seniors Zack Bundy, Sean Adams, and Eric Peaslee were honored before the game. Bundy got the start on the mound and was consistent throughout, scattering seven hits, but walking only two, and striking out 10 in the complete game victory. His defense behind him did the rest of the work.

“The key was throwing strikes, but my offense also had 10 runs, so that certainly helped,” Zack Bundy said. “We had a big cushion, and that let me relax and made it much easier to throw strikes.”

Bundy’s biggest jam came in the top of the first, when — with second and third and just one out — he struck out two Laconia (0-12) hitters to get out unscathed.

The Sachems made only one error, but their pitchers had trouble finding the plate, walking nine and hitting three other batters (all in the second inning).

Stevens (4-9) scored twice in the second and twice more in the third to go up 4-0 and broke things open in the fourth. Bundy’s single was the only hit in the frame that left the infield, but they were patient, took advantage of five walks, and got infield RBI singles from Carson Vielguth and freshman Matt Goss to put the game out of reach.

Laconia was able to avoid the run-rule ending things early, and did eventually score a run in the sixth inning to break up the shutout, but that was it.

“This was the last time Zack is ever going to throw on this field and that’s something special. It’s exciting for our whole family, and he gets the win,” Bill Bundy said. “I’m very excited for Zack, he threw very well tonight. He got a little tired at the end, but he finished it off.”

Friday’s star Ty Theriault was the only Cardinal to have more than one hit (Stevens had eight in all), but seven of the nine starters had at least one. Dom Puksta scored four times (going 1-for-1 with three walks), while Colby Shepard added three more runs.

Stevens’ road to the playoffs gets a bit tougher when it takes on Pembroke Wednesday night to conclude its home season, but a win there would give it real hope to sneak into the playoffs heading into the final week of the regular season.