Saints use four-run fifth to claim first title since 1982
By Matt Stout
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| Tali Greener/Norwich Bulletin
St. Bernard's Jeff Daley, left, slides safely into third Saturday as Northwest Catholic's Kyle Sumple waits for the ball during the Class S championship.
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| Tali Greener/Norwich Bulletin
St. Bernard's Tyler Turgeon, left, and Dan Eagan, right, scream with excitement Saturday as the Saints take the lead over Northwest Catholic during the fifth inning of the Class S Championship at Yale Field in West Haven. St. Bernard won, 6-4.
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| Tali Greener/Norwich Bulletin
St. Bernard catcher Dan Eagan, right, tags out Northwest Catholic's Tony Blake at home plate Saturday in the Class S championship.
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WEST HAVEN -- Serving as acting coach for the St. Bernard High School baseball team Saturday in the Class S championship, Jim Leone probably didn't have to say anything with his team trailing by two runs in the fifth inning.
But he did anyway.
"It's not like we haven't been behind," Leone said in the Saints' game with Northwest Catholic-West Hartford at Yale Field. "I said, 'We've been here. We know what it feels like. Come out hitting.' "
And again, top-seeded St. Bernard did.
Behind four fifth-inning hits, including back-to-back triples from seniors Tyler Turgeon and Jeff Daley, the Saints erased the Indians' slim lead and captured a 6-4 win for their fourth state title and first since 1982, when it played in Class L.
The comeback marked St. Bernard's third come-from-behind victory in the tournament after it erased sixth-inning deficits in both the second round and semifinals. Even more remarkably, the Saints (23-2) did it without head coach Mike Garvie and senior outfielder Ben Nossek, who were both ejected in the team's semifinal win over Trinity Catholic. Per CIAC rules, both were prohibited from attending the game.
Still, following the final out, Garvie greeted the team near the first-base dugout to bask in the celebration.
"We really missed not having Ben's bat in the lineup ... and Garvie, him not being here for this, it's awful," said Turgeon, one of eight seniors -- seven of whom start. "But we did it for him. We had all the motivation in the world."
Yet, from the start, they had their work cut out for them.
After Northwest's Jack Wagoner reached on a throwing error to open the second inning, Kyle Sumple followed with a single, St. Bernard starter Jeff DeLucia hit Pat Tanguay in the back and Rob Dornfried lined a sharp single to left, scoring both Wagoner and Sumple, who beat the throw at the plate.
With Tanguay taking off for third, catcher Dan Eagan's throw sailed high and off the glove of third baseman Mike Aldrich, allowing the sophomore to take home for a 3-0 lead.
The Saints rebounded in the third when Ryan Brahm lined a triple into the right-field corner for their first hit off Wagoner and Anthony Ruffo reached two batters later on an error. That opened the door for Aldrich, who singled home a run, and Turgeon, who scored one with a sacrifice fly.
But Northwest chased DeLucia (four runs, one earned, on five hits and two walks) an inning later when Tom Bourdon ushered home Dornfried with a single to left-center.
Undaunted, the Saints escaped further damage when Pat Lowery came on to record the final out, setting the stage for their comeback in the fifth. After senior Grant Livingston opened the frame with a single, Northwest recorded two outs before Aldrich (hit by pitch), Turgeon (triple), Daley (triple) and Harrison Smith (single) all reached in consecutive at-bats to turn the 4-2 deficit into a 6-4 lead they wouldn't relinquish.
Wagoner (8-1) ceded six runs (five earned) on seven hits in 42¼3 innings. Lowery, a junior, shut Northwest down in 31¼3 innings of relief to get the win, allowing two hits while striking out two.
"The funny thing is Pat Lowery said after the fifth, 'I don't have anything left in the tank. But I'll go as far as I can,' " Leone said. "As soon as we score four runs, he was throwing gas ... That's all he needed to get going."
And, coincidently, it was all St. Bernard, which overcame four errors, needed to finish off another improbable win.
"This doesn't take away from anything the kids did on the field today," said Garvie, who added he was "around the facility" during the game.
"They went out there and produced," he continued. "It's all on their shoulders."
Reach Matt Stout at 425-4250 or sports@norwichbulletin.com
