When Bedford took the diamond in the losers bracket quarterfinals on Monday, July 14, the team in the opposite dugout, Salem National, held the advantage of a week’s worth of rest. Yet Bedford remained game-tested by winning twice in that span.

At the end of the day, tested beat rested.

Bedford limited a potent National lineup to one hit and earned an 8-1 victory to advance to the losers bracket semifinal. “We had a seven-day layoff, so we were a little rusty out there,” said Salem National’s manager, George Morin.

“You know, we practiced, even had some professional batting coaches help us, but sometimes that’s what you get.

“Twenty-eight teams entered the tournament, and we ended up No. 6. That’s something to be proud of,” he continued. “There’s a lot of good teams here, and Bedford is as solid as I’ve seen.”

Bedford’s manager, David Cassidy, said the additional games helped his squad. “We are definitely rolling,” he said. “We’ve won three in a row, the bats are alive, the pitching is good, everybody is hitting, everybody is contributing.”

The game was close for the first four and a half innings.

Taylor Grande doubled Xander Kalil home in the second to give Bedford an early lead. Bedford padded its lead when John Cassidy led off with a single and was driven home on a David Cannone triple. Ryan Bliss notched a base hit to push Cannone across the plate, giving Bedford a 3-0 lead in the third.

Then Salem National pitcher Dominic Gigante took over. He struck out the next three batters and led off the next inning with a towering home run to straight-away center field. That was the lone hit given up by Bedford starter Cameron Meservey.

Gigante held Bedford down in the bottom of the fourth, but a series of tough bounces and errant throws in the fifth inning aided a five-run Bedford outburst, and Kalil closed the game out from the mound in the top of the sixth.

“I thought we were going to take it back, but we just couldn’t get a hop,” said Morin. “I give them credit. They put the bat on the ball.”

Bedford completed its second consecutive errorless game, and every player contributed with hitting, defense or baserunning, said Cassidy.

That list includes Joshua Belz, Dylan Cowette, John Vanderminden, Christopher Rizos, Matthew Sarro, Joey Morin and Chris Viola.

Bedford was scheduled to host Goffstown, on Wednesday, July 16.

“That’s the matchup we wanted,” said Cassidy. “I’ll tell you, if we play like we’ve played the last two games, (Goffstown’s) done.”

The winner plays Nashua on Thursday, July 17, for the opportunity to play defending champ Manchester North, the team that gave Bedford both losses in last year’s tournament, including a 12-3 championshipgame thumping.

“We want North,” said Cassidy. “We want a chance to redeem ourselves for last year.”