BY RYAN O'CONNOR Pitcher Colin Begin fanned the first three batters in the game and then homered to straight-away center to lead off the second inning. But on Monday, June 25, personal and team success proved short-lived for Windham’s 11- and 12-year-old Little League all-stars. Begin allowed eight runs in the bottom of the second ...

BY SAPNA PATHAK “I didn’t screw it up this year.” It was the way Mark Marasca described leading the boys of Mountain View Middle School baseball to this season’s Tri-County League title. After graduating 13 of last year’s 14 players, the Lions turned a rebuilding year into one providing their mentor with an ...

BY SAPNA PATHAK The losing team didn’t force insincere handshakes or meaningless pats on the back. The winning team didn’t applaud half-heartedly when the opposition received its runner-up plaque. No, this year’s Class L baseball championship post-game festivities included genuine smiles and heartfelt hugs. Maybe it was ...

BY SAPNA PATHAK Following a 5-0 loss in this year’s Class I baseball tournament, Ben Forbes knew exactly what hurt his team. He’d seen it hamper his players all season. “Too much thinking and not enough swinging,” is how the Bow High head coach described the problem that’s troubled his lineup this year. So, strong ...

BY SAPNA PATHAK He doesn’t hold lengthy meetings formulating strategies or make his players follow any over-the-top practice schedule. Rather, Matt Benson relies on and repeats just one piece of information to help the boys of Goffstown baseball prepare for playoff games. So far, it’s worked. “‘Seedings mean ...

BY MATT STOUT In the bottom of the seventh inning with two out and the team ahead, 2-1, Manchester West was on the verge of upsetting one of the top teams in Class L. If they hadn’t already, the Blue Knights realized – at that point, on that day – this season was not meant to turn out well for them. The game in question, a ...

BY SAPNA PATHAK For the second year in a row, Dan Keleher grasped for the right words to comfort his players after a premature postseason exit. And for the second year in a row, he couldn’t find them. Upset as the second seed in the first round of last year’s Class L baseball tournament, the boys of Salem baseball faced the same ...

BY MATT STOUT Sitting atop the Class M standings with a 13-0 record entering Wednesday, May 23, the Hopkinton baseball team realizes no victories will simply be handed to it this season. Well, almost none. The Hawks’ 1-1, 10-inning forfeit victory over 5-7 Winnisquam on Monday, May 21, wasn’t the end either coach imagined for the ...

BY JERRY LIPTAK After handing Portsmouth its only loss of the season on May 8, Pelham was rolling. Nearly two weeks and three straight losses later, the Pythons were 10-5 and sputtering. But in baseball, The Big Three – good pitching, solid defense and timely hitting – are great equalizers. In Pelham’s case, they’re more ...

BY MATT STOUT For weeks, the Salem baseball team clubbed its way through Class L without one of its best hitters. Now, Matt Delaney is proving why he’s so vital to the Blue Devils’ high-powered lineup. Delaney tripled home the winning run in Salem’s 4-3 comeback victory over Bishop Guertin on Thursday, May 17, before he ...