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Tupper Lake’s Griffin Shaheen pitches the ball during Monday’s playoff game against Harrisville.
(Enterprise photo — Parker O’Brien)

TUPPER LAKE — The Lumberjacks aren’t done just yet.

After dropping three straight games to end the regular season, the Tupper Lake baseball team turned up the intensity at just the right time.

The Lumberjacks piled on run-after-run before claiming a 20-9 victory over the Harrisville Pirates in the Section X Class D quarterfinal matchup at home on Monday.

Griffin Shaheen, a sophomore, was dominant on the mound for Tupper Lake. In the six innings he pitched, Shaheen struck out six Harrisville batters, while giving up four hits.

“I felt good,” Shaheen said. “I had my boys behind me and it felt good to know that I had a team behind me that was there to play for me.”

Tupper Lake’s Karter Kenniston takes a lead at first base during Monday’s home playoff game against Harrisville.
(Enterprise photo — Parker O’Brien)

Shaheen was even better from the plate, batting three-for-four with five runs batted in. In his final at-bat, Shaheen smoked a two-run triple into the outfield.

“I just sat back on the fastball and waited for it,” Shaheen said. “When it came in, I drove it.”

The Lumberjacks’ Grant Godin had a monstrous day batting as well. Godin, a senior, managed to reach base in all five of his plate appearances. Godin finished the game batting three-for-three and was a triple shy of the cycle.

Tupper Lake’s Ryder Willett, a sophomore, had a standout game, recording three singles and three RBIs. As a team, the Lumberjacks had 12 hits, while the Pirates had seven.

“I think it’s a game we knew we could win, but coming off a three-game losing streak where we struggled with some of the basics, I was proud of the kids for bouncing back,” Lumberjacks head coach Dan Brown said. “You get a teenage mind with a little lack of confidence — a little lack of judgment because of the times — it’s really tough to keep them on their toes.

“The boys showed how mentally tough they were today,” he added. “That’s what makes me proud. It’s great to hit the ball around, but to be mentally tough is what is going to prove to be successful.”

Despite the double-digit win, Tupper Lake entered the ball game with a lack of confidence.

In just the first inning, the Lumberjacks recorded three fielding errors, which allowed the Pirates to take a three-run advantage. Tupper Lake did score two runs in the back half of the first inning, but after Harrisville scored another run in the second to take a 4-2 lead, hope was quickly leaving the Lumberjack dugout.

That all changed when Godin stepped up to the plate for Tupper Lake in the bottom of the third inning. With one runner on first base, Godin hit a shot past the outfielders for a two-run home run to tie the game at 4-4.

The Lumberjacks broke the tie, after Shaheen, who reached third base after hitting a single and stealing two bases, scored on a wild pitch.

After a scoreless fourth inning from both teams, Harrisville scored twice to take back the lead in the fifth inning.

Trailing 6-5, Tupper Lake stayed patient at the plate and rallied off nine runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to take a commanding 14-6. The Lumberjacks had six batters reach base by way of a walk or a hit by pitch.

After shutting out the Pirates in the top of the sixth inning, Tupper Lake piled on six more runs in the bottom half of the frame, before Grant Bencze, a sophomore, closed out the game on the mound for the Lumberjacks.

With the win, Tupper Lake, now 12-4 on the season, advances to the Section X Class D Semifinal game, where the team will take on Parishville-Hopkinton at 5 p.m. on the road Thursday.

“That’s a team we beat 5-0 and lost to 14-10,” Brown said. “Having the confidence with 20 runs behind us is definitely going to help us out there.”


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