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By Mike Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
It was a tough end for Needham Post 14 Legion on Sunday afternoon in Braintree. Less than 24 hours after a miracle 10-9 comeback victory against Norwood to keep their season alive, No. 4 seed Post 14 took on No. 2 seed out of the East Division, Hyde Park, for a spot in the District Six semifinals. Despite a late rally to cut the deficit to one run, an early 4-0 hole was too much to overcome and Hyde Park eliminated Post 14 by a 10-8 final.
Back-to-back doubles and an RBI single in the top of the first gave Hyde Park an early 2-0 lead. Hyde Park extended its lead to 4-0 following a pair of singles and a pair of wild pitches to the backstop in the bottom of the second.
Wellesley’s Matt Connelly wore a pitch on the arm to lead off the top of the fourth for Post 14. Drew Dorsey walked with two outs followed by a passed ball, putting runners at second and third for Bryce Anderson. On a 3-2 count, Anderson delivered a single to right to plate both Connelly and Dorsey and cut the deficit down to 4-2.
An RBI triple and a passed ball to the backstop allowed Hyde Park to extend its lead back to four at 6-2 in the bottom half.
Hunter Anderson singled to begin the top of the fifth and advanced to third following a fielder’s choice and a stolen base. St. Sebastian’s product and Westwood native Joe Fiore and Will Foley drew back-to-back walks to load the bases for Andrew Ko, who smacked a bases-clearing double into the right-centerfield gap to trim the deficit to 6-5.
Matt Connelly (24) is congratulated by Andrew Ko (37) after scoring Needham Post 14’s first run of the game against Hyde Park on Sunday.
Hyde Park rallied once again in the home half, plating four runs to seize a commanding 10-5 lead after five full.
Matt Connelly crushed a home run to right-center in the top of the sixth to cut the deficit to 10-6. Joe Fiore worked his way out of a first and second no-out jam in the bottom half to keep the deficit at four entering the top of the seventh. An RBI triple by Bryce Anderson made it a 10-7 game with one out, followed by an RBI groundout by Dorsey to plate Anderson and make it a 10-8 game. Hunter Anderson worked the count by struck out to end it in the ensuing at-bat as Hyde Park advanced with the 10-8 victory.
For funny and insightful sports analysis, follow Mike Flanagan on his personal Twitter @fLAno0.
