BANGOR, Maine — Most of Bangor High School’s early season baseball success this spring was founded in pitching and defense.
As the Rams begin the second half of their schedule, it appears the offense is catching up.
Eight different batters contributed to a 10-hit attack as the two-time defending Class A state champions remained unbeaten Wednesday with a 10-0, six-inning victory over Hampden Academy at Mansfield Stadium.
Leadoff hitter Kyle Stevenson scored three runs, winning pitcher Trevor DeLaite added two hits, two RBIs and two runs scored and Nick Cowperthwaite drove home three runs from the seventh spot in the batting order as coach Jeff Fahey’s Bangor club improved to 9-0.
“We’ve moved a couple of guys down in the order a little,” said DeLaite, “and they’re starting to see the ball well and hit the ball hard so definitely our lineup is a little deeper now.”
DeLaite (4-0) also stretched his scoreless streak on the mound to 27 innings since yielding his lone run of the season to date during his first inning of the spring against Oxford Hills of South Paris on April 20.
The University of Maine-bound senior left-hander scattered four hits while striking out five batters and walking one — bringing his season’s totals in those latter two categories to 44 strikeouts against two walks.
“He’s just a bulldog,” said Stevenson. “Even if he doesn’t have his best stuff he finds a way to get it done every game.”
DeLaite’s effort marked Bangor’s fourth shutout this spring. The Rams have now allowed just 10 runs — six earned — in their nine victories.
Such statistical realities left Hampden knowing it had a small margin for error against Bangor, but while junior right-hander Alex McKenney allowed just two earned runs on seven hits over five innings, the Broncos committed five errors that led to four unearned runs.
“When you go up against Trevor you have to play mentally focused the whole game and you can’t have mental mistakes,” said Hampden coach McLean Poulin, whose team fell to 5-4 after their first loss of the season that wasn’t by one run.
“If you do have mistakes, especially in the field, with the type of team they are they’ll capitalize on them.”
Bangor was aided by two Hampden errors while taking a 2-0 third-inning lead, with DeLaite also hitting an RBI single to drive home Stevenson and later scoring from third on the back end of a double steal with Peter Kemble.
The Rams added four runs on four hits in the fifth, including an RBI triple to deep center by DeLaite, a run-producing infield hit over second base by Jesse Colford and a two-out, two-run single by Cowperthwaite.
Bangor closed out the game with four runs off Hampden reliever Billy Campbell in the sixth. Derek Fournier had the second of his two hits in the game, an RBI single to right, while Gary Farnham doubled, George Payne popped an RBI single to left and Cowperthwaite drew a bases-loaded walk before Ben Crichton drove home the game-ending run with an infield groundout.
Andrew Gendreau paced Hampden offensively with two singles.
“I know (former Bangor coach) Bob Kelley used to say if you score three or four runs you win almost every game in high school baseball,” said Fahey. “I don’t know if that’s 100 percent true, but I know with Trevor on the mound if we score three or four runs our chances are pretty good.”
