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 a 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 (Bedford) credit, they put the bat on the ball.”

In addition to Gigante, those contributing during Salem’s 3-2 tournament run include Alexander Mahn, Kole Ouellette, Cody Soucy, Daniel Morin, Sean Watson, Austin Wilson, Carleton Beaulieu, Zachary Guilmet, Zachary Fuller, Jared Williamson and Santino Brancato.