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Methuen rallies for Lawrence title

Saturday, May, 24 By Jeff Hamrick

LAWRENCE — After outlasting the downpour that threatened the game's start, it was Methuen that reigned at the Lawrence tournament.

The Rangers, who earned a postseason berth with a semifinal win the night before, rallied twice to tie the score before erupting for four runs in the seventh to defeat Lawrence 7-3.

"We've sort of had a Jekyl-and-Hyde season," Methuen coach Eric Cyr said after watching his team win for the sixth time in the past seven outings. "It's a very resilient bunch. They've learned to not get too high or too low and just be competitive at all times."

It took five innings before the Rangers mounted a threat. Trailing by a pair, tournament MVP Jonathan Pierce tied the game with a single that drove in Nick Panzini and Josue Espinal.

But Lawrence, which scored single runs in the second  and third despite only one base hit, reclaimed the lead in the bottom of the fifth when Daluigi Gonzalez reached on one of Methuen's five errors and crossed the plate on a passed ball.

But that would be it for the Lancers, who were chasing their first tourney title since 2002.

Methuen (11-9) clawed back with a run in the sixth when a passed ball plated Mike Tulley, who had singled and went to third on a hit-and-run single by Danny Aziz.

The Rangers salted away the victory in the seventh with three hits and two walks off Joan Vargas, who threw an inning of relief a day after his spectacular perfect game against North Andover in the semifinals. A couple errors also proved crucial in Methuen's winning frame.

Pierce led the way with three RBIs in his 3-for-4 night. Five other Rangers each had one hit.

"We hit the ball hard earlier in the game, but we knew if we kept putting good strings on the baseball, something would fall," Cyr said.  "It was a good team win."

Lawrence (13-10) couldn't find its way at the plate against four Methuen pitchers with an RBI double from Luis Ortiz in the third and a harmless single by Jesus Ventura in the fourth being the only base knocks. The importance of winning its tournament was evident when Lancer coach Brendan Neilon inserted Vargas with none out and two runners on in the sixth.

 "We've been trying to win this tournament for the past 10 years," Neilon said. "We just didn't get the big hits in the seventh. I thought it would have looked great (for Vargas) in the state sheet with a perfect game and a save. But it wasn't meant to be."