BY FREDERICK POCKETTE
BRANDON—Behind an RBI single by Ben Adams, and a stellar pitching performance by Jordan Beayon, the Otter Valley Otters varsity baseball team lead the Bellows Falls Terriers 1-0 going into the bottom of the seventh inning of their season opener this past Saturday at Bellows Falls.
The bottom of the seventh started out just as great as the rest of the game when Beayon recorded his 12th and 13th strikeouts of the day on the first two hitters. The Otters needed just one more out to secure the season opening win, but it wouldn’t come. Otter Valley committed a crucial error on the next play, and the Terriers capitalized on the extra life. The very next batter walked, and then a stolen base and passed ball put the tying run at third and the winning run at second. What happened next is heartbreaking. Tom Fletcher sent a fly ball to right field that was carried by the wind away from the Otter defenders, and it fell to the ground as a game-winning double.
Jamison Nystrom pitched a great game for the hometown Terriers as well. He went six innings, giving up just four hits and one earned run, while striking out nine. Beayon was masterful for the Otters. Beayon went 6 2/3, striking out 13 while giving up just two hits, and no earned runs.
While the results are not what OV had hoped for, they have to be excited about the pitching they got. Offensively, the Otters were led by Adams’ RBI single, along with Beayon and Matt Bryant, who were each one for three with a walk and a double. Andy McEnerney added a hit in three plate appearances.
