WALKIN’ ON AIR!
WALPOLE BECOMES LOWEST SEED TO MAKE SUPER EIGHT SEMIFINALS
HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL
Cam Schlittler was dialed in yesterday and now No. 8 Walpole is in unchartered territory.
Schlittler, a junior, went up against one of the strongest lineups in the state and helped the Rebels to a 6-4 triumph over No. 3 St. John’s Prep in the Super Eight. With that, Walpole became the first eightseed to advance to the round of four in the now five years of the tournament format.
“We without a doubt think we can win this thing,” Walpole coach Chris Costello said. “Every team in this tournament believes that. We certainly believe we can play with anybody in the state on any given day.”
The Rebels (17-6) struck early, pushing across four runs in the bottom of the second thanks to two hits and four walks.
That was enough for Schlittler early, as the righty kept the Eagles (17-8) off the board.
“He is really good,” Costello simply stated. “He has four pitches, he throws them for strikes, and he really buttons up with guys on base. He is a special one.”
From the second through the fourth, Schlittler worked methodically, leaving a runner at third each frame. In that span, he fanned seven batters as St. John’s Prep was unable to get a timely hit. In the bottom of the fifth, it finally happened when Michael Yarin roped a wind-aided tworun homer to cut the deficit to 4-2.
By the end of his outing, Schlittler recorded 10 strikeouts, surrendering four earned runs and one walk in eight impressive innings.
“We game plan specifically for guys and he controlled the two, three and four hitters for the most part. He was able to make really good pitches to the bottom of the lineup and the leader to keep guys off of base for Yarin and (Alex) Lane,” said Costello.
In the sixth, Walpole tacked on two more on RBI singles from Bryan Kraus and Christopher McLean. Schlittler then capped a streak of seven straight batters retired after the Yarin homer.
While leading 6-4, Walpole junior Matthew Chaumon hurled a 1-2-3 ninth to record the save and put an end to a streak of three straight championship appearances for St. John’s Prep.
“We are the smallest school in Division 1. Our guys truly believe we are as good as anybody and we are well-respected for that reason. We play with such emotion,” Costello said.
In other Super Eight action, Mike Vasil came on in relief with two outs in the eighth and proceeded to strike out the final four batters on 14 pitches as top-seeded BC High (17-6) stayed alive by eliminating Wachusett, 6-5, at Campanelli. The Eagles look to keep their season alive this afternoon when they face Walpole for the second time in the tourney.
Matt Sullivan’s RBI single keyed a fourrun second inning, giving the Eagles an early 4-0 lead. Dave Driscoll had an RBI single an inning later and Sean O’Connell’s opposite-field home run extended the lead to 6-0 after five innings.
Wachusett (21-4) got on the board in the sixth, scoring twice. BC High center fielder Luke Murphy kept the damage to a minimum with a spectacular diving catch, saving three runs.
Stony Brook-bound Cole Durkan’s fielder’s choice in the seventh brought in a run, cutting the deficit to 6-3. His RBI single in the eighth got the Mountainteers to within a run at 6-5 before Vasil slammed the door.
Kevin Zarnoch capped off a two-run rally in the seventh by walking with the bases loaded to give No. 1 Boston Latin (16-5) a 4-3 victory over No. 9 LincolnSudbury in a Div. 1 North quarterfinal . ... Nick Caliri’s walkoff single in the last of the seventh capped off a wild comeback as No. 4 Waltham (14-7) rallied from a 7-0 deficit to defeat No. 5 Andover, 9-8.