NEWTOWN, Mass. – One year after battling to the final day of the New England Regional Championship as 13-year-olds, Pittsfield’s 14-year-old Babe Ruth All-Stars made it one step further.

 

But they will have to wait until next year to reach the ultimate goal of representing the region in the World Series.

 

Ethan Godomsky threw 6 and one-third innings of shutout ball Monday to lead Maine Champion Tri-County to a 5-2 win over Pittsfield on High Meadow Field.

 

Unlike a year ago, when Pittsfield lost in the morning competition of the tournament’s final day, this time around, Sebastian Herrera sizzled for 5 and two-thirds innings in a 7-0 Monday win over Keene, N.H., to reach the tournament finale.

 

“The last two years, the way this group came together and made their runs and battled and worked their butts off to get in the position they are – I know as coaches and all these parents, we’re proud of them,” Pittsfield coach Bryan Maloy said.

 

“We’ll be back next year.

 

“One game further than last year, and we’ll keep trying to make that progress and move forward.”

 

This year, it’s the Mainers who are moving forward to the national championship tournament in Eagle Pass, Texas.

 

Tri-County jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning in Monday’s final.

 

The designated visitors drew walks in their first two at-bats, and Finley Cavers singled with one out to load the bases.

 

With two out, Nolan Cavers singled down the left field line to drive in the game’s first run. And Shawn West followed with a two-run single to give his team a three-run margin.

 

Pittsfield starting pitcher Mason Daley, who threw a shutout in his first outing of the regional, ended the first by stranding two runners on a comebacker to the mound and settled down to keep Tri-County off the board over the next three innings to give his team a chance before Brendan Merwin provided two innings of scoreless relief.

 

“[Daley] settled in after that first inning and got us right back in it, Maloy said. “He fought to the end. We just couldn’t pull it out.”

 

Pittsfield did pull within one run with two-run second – scoring both its runs without a hit.

 

Brendan Merwin and Herrera worked walks at the top of the lineup in an echo of Tri-Town’s opening rally. 

 

Merwin eventually stole second and third and came home on an overthrow at third base to make it 3-1.

 

Jason Fields reached on a fielder’s choice with two out and moved around when Robert Bazinet and Mario Zerbato each walked to load the bases.

 

Cameron Reynolds then worked an RBI walk that made it 3-2 and ended the day for Tri-Town’s starter.

 

Godomsky moved from right field to the mound and got a ground ball to the right side to end the inning, and the Mainers never looked back.

 

Pittsfield, which scored 22 runs in its first three games at the regional, managed just three hits over the remaining six innings.

 

“[Godomsky’s] fielders behind him made plays,” Maloy said of Tri-County. “We hit the ball pretty hard, actually. It just happened not to fall.”

 

Tri-County tacked on a couple of runs in the top of the fifth, which started with a leadoff double by Tucker Hildrich, who started on the mound before moving to the outfield.

 

One inning later, Pittsfield mounted its best threat to answer.

 

Bazinet led off with a double, and Reynolds singled up the middle to put runners at the corners with one out. Reynolds then stole second to put two in scoring position with one out. But Godomsky got a fly ball to third and a grounder to third to leave both runners in place.

 

He then worked a 1-2-3 inning in the seventh to send his team back to Vacationland with a title.

 

In Monday’s regional semi-final, Pittsfield took the early lead, scoring four times in the second inning.

 

The big blow came from Gavin Maffuccio, who delivered a two-run double and later scored on a wild pitch to make it 4-0.

 

Pittsfield added two in the fourth, when Eli Kristensen drove in a run. And Maffuccio’s RBI single in the fifth pushed the lead to 7-0.

 

That was more than enough offensive support for Herrera, who struck out 10 and walked two, pitching into the sixth inning before he hit his maximum pitch count.

 

Fields finished up, striking out a pair over the remaining inning and a third.

 

“That was huge,” Maloy said of Herrera’s performance in Friday’s opener. “He came out and delivered. Everybody did their job, and they gave us a chance to go to the World Series.”

 

Photos from this game to come.