Ben Leonard (16), Ryan Murray (12) and the Warriors celebrate following their comeback 5-4 win against Dedham on Friday in the Division III South semifinals. Photos by Mike Flanagan.
By Mike Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
On Monday afternoon, Medfield High varsity baseball cruised to an 11-0 victory against top-seeded Middleboro to win the Division III South championship.
Three days prior, however, the No. 3 Warriors were not even thinking about winning the sectional title. Instead, Medfield found themselves in a dogfight with TVL rival and No. 7 Dedham in the semifinal round in front of a packed crowd at Schilling Field.
Trailing 4-3 in the bottom of the sixth, Pepperdine committed shortstop Jack Goodman launched a two-run bomb deep into the left field woods to give Medfield back the lead.
"I was waiting for my pitch," said Goodman on what turned out to be the game-winning hit. "[Sam] Palmer had a good at-bat and got on base right before I came up. I was patient, stuck to my game plan and it worked out. Now we're on to Middleboro."
Following Goodman's go-ahead homer, Matt Donahue shut the door with a pair of strikeouts mixed around a ground-out to second as the Warriors advanced by the 5-4 final.
"He was excellent," said Goodman on his fellow junior counterpart Donahue. "He's just like his older brother, Ryan. Not afraid to pitch in big moments. That was as big of a moment as we've ever had as a team, and he really brought it today."
At the time of print, Medfield will take on North champion Bishop Fenwick in the Division III state semifinals on Wednesday.
For funny and incisive sports analysis as well as video highlights of games, follow Mike Flanagan on his personal Twitter and Instagram handles @flano0.
