The Marblehead High baseball team (6-6 in the Northeastern Conference, and 10-7 overall) began a brand new week with a 6-4 home win against rival Swampscott on May 15. They closed out the week with a shutout win over visiting Peabody to clinch a Division 2 state tournament berth, where they are ranked 30th as of May 19.
“Swampscott took advantage of some free base runners, some extra outs and some timely hitting to grab a 4-2 lead, but after a few base running mistakes early on, we were eventually able to recapture the lead,” said coach Mike Giardi after the Big Blue contest.
But the Big Blue did not go away quietly. They staged a late rally in the seventh inning, putting runners in scoring position. But Chris Cannuscio once again came to the rescue for the Magicians to pick up his third save in as many games.
Two days later on Senior Day at Seaside Park, the Beverly Panthers interrupted the momentum by pinning a 6-2 loss on the home team.
“When you play good teams, you cannot give them extra opportunities, and that’s exactly what we did against Beverly,” said Giardi.
“The Panthers only held a slim 5-2 advantage in hits, but between our own miscues and giving them some more free runners in the form of walks, it resulted in several unearned runs,” added the veteran Marblehead coach.
Beverly pitcher Noah Guanci allowed just one earned run while fanning 15 over seven innings to secure the complete-game, dominating win on the mound.
The homestand concluded with a 10-0 shutout win over the Peabody Tanners on May 19.
“We jumped out with six runs in the first and never looked back,” said Giardi. “We then added four more in the fourth to help secure our 10th overall victory.”
Against Swampscott, Ian Maude (five hits, three walks, three strikeouts, four earned runs, just one earned) pitched the first 6.1 innings to get credit for the win before Cannuscio (1 strikeout) came in to lock down the save.
The Marblehead offense banged out 10 hits, led by Shane Keough, Bodie Bartram and Drake Wyman with two each. Bartram knocked in three runs with his two singles. Matt Mahan singled in a couple of runs to contribute to the offense as well. Stefan Shepard accounted for the lone extra-base hit for the Magicians with a double.
The Magicians got just four hits against Beverly. Riley Schmitt chipped in with two singles, while Keough came through with a single and a double. They each scored a run. Bartram drove home one run on a fielder’s choice.
Drew Whitman went 6.1 innings, allowing five hits, three walks and six runs, just three earned. He whiffed seven. Cody Selvais retired the final two batters in the top of the seventh.
In the mercy-rule rout against the Tanners, Cannuscio pitched all five innings to secure the victory, yielding just two hits and two walks while whiffing five.
Bartram paced the attack with a single and a double that accounted for five big RBI. Mahan singled in two runs. Jake Scogland, Brooks Keefe and Wyman each knocked in one run via singles.
The Magicians were set to start the final week of the regular season with a home game against Winthrop on May 22. They will be at Salem Thursday under the twilight, beginning at 6 p.m.
The state tournament pairings are scheduled to be announced on Saturday, with the games beginning next week.
