'We win Central Mass. titles, we buy the kids Kimball’s': Leominster celebrates Class A baseball title victory over Wachusett

WORCESTER — The Leominster High baseball team saw its eight-game winning streak against Wachusett Regional snapped with a 6-4 setback on May 13.

So that provided a dose of incentive for the Blue Devils when they met their Mid-Wach A rival for the Central Mass. Class A championship. Then there was the ice cream.

“We win Central Mass. titles, we buy the kids Kimball’s,” coach Rich Barnaby said. “Ice cream and baseball, it’s like peanut butter and jelly."

Break out the jimmies, hot fudge and whipped cream as the top-seeded Blue Devils scored six runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to rally for an 8-4 win over the No. 3 Mountaineers on Wednesday afternoon at Tivnan Field.

Then it was off to Kimball Farm in Lancaster for some cold refreshments on an unseasonably hot day during which the thermometer was pushing 90 when the first pitch was thrown just before 5 p.m.

It was the second straight CMass Class A title — a tournament put on by the area’s athletic directors — and third in four years for the Blue Devils, who double dipped in 2021 when they also won the MIAA-run CMass sectional.

“It’s just special for me, my seniors and everyone going forward,” junior Reese Lora said after the Blue Devils improved to 15-2. “And the younger guys especially, seeing such a winning program and seeing what they can achieve later in the years to come.”

The Mountaineers (10-9) scored two unearned runs in the first before the Blue Devils tied it in the bottom of the inning. Wachusett regained and extended the lead with RBI singles by juniors Nate Roy in the fourth and Ethan Divito in the fifth.

The advantage melted quickly as the Blue Devils collected 4 hits, 2 walks and 6 runs, while the Mountaineers aided their adversaries with a pair of fielding miscues in the bottom of the inning.

A dropped pop fly on the edge of the grass with one out and the bases loaded allowed the Blue Devils to take a 5-4 lead. Wachusett coach Jeff Kodys questioned the umpires on why the infield fly rule wasn’t invoked, but didn’t receive a satisfactory answer.

“You can’t agree with every call,” Kodys said. “You don’t lose a game on one call, but you can’t have a half inning where you give up six runs.”

The big hits in the decisive fifth were provided by Lora, whose two-run dribbler down the third base line tie it at 4-all, and senior Zack Casey, whose two-run, one-bounce single to left field made it 7-4.

Not to be overlooked, a one-out walk drawn by No. 8 batter Danny Nelson and a single by No. 9 hitter A.J. Wozniak jump-started the Blue Devils.

“They’re the catalysts, and then when the top of the order, which is really strong for us, comes up, and you have runners on base — and we’re pretty aggressive stealing bases, too — it becomes really difficult for a pitching staff,” Barnaby said.

“All year we’ve kind of had that goal, “Let’s have the biggest inning. Let’s have a three-, four-, five-run inning.’ And that puts games away for us a little bit.”

The Bridgewater State-bound Casey, who also doubled, finished with three RBIs, while Lora, who started and pitched into the fifth, collected 2 hits, 2 RBIs, 2 runs and a walk.

Seniors Angel Baez and Dom Swaine delivered runs with sacrifice flies, while senior Nick Massa scored twice after singling and walking.

The Mountaineers have a quick turnaround as they host Grafton at 4 p.m. Thursday, while the Blue Devils close out their regular season at 6 p.m. Friday versus Holliston at Doyle Field.

Looking ahead to the state tournament, the Blue Devils, who are seventh in the latest Division 1 power rankings, are sure to receive a boost from their latest win while the Mountaineers take confidence from being involved in yet another competitive game.

“We’re been in games that were decided by one or two runs (going 9-6) pretty much the whole season, so I think we’ve been playing in a playoff atmosphere against really good teams,” Kodys said.

“If you look at strength of schedule outside of the Catholic Conference, we’re one of the top teams in the state with who we play. We do that for a reason, so we’re ready to play come June.”

The Mountaineers’ strength of schedule checks in sixth overall and first among non-Catholic Conference schools among the 60 teams in Division 1.

—Contact Rich Garven at rgarven@telegram.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @RichGarvenTG.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Leominster gets back at Wachusett, repeats as CMass Class A baseball champ