PEABODY — Monday was Trey DeLoury’s day.
After pitching five stellar innings of relief, the Bishop Fenwick senior stepped to the plate in the bottom of the seventh inning and roped a walk-off 2-RBI double to lift the No. 4 Crusaders over No. 5 Saugus, 5-4, in the Division 3 North quarterfinal at McHugh/Farley Complex. The Crusaders fell behind 4-0 in the first inning and went into the bottom of the seventh down 4-2 before DeLoury and company went to work.
“It really was incredible,” said Fenwick coach Russ Steeves. “We were down four to probably the best pitcher we’ve faced all year and we were just trying to hang in there, and we finally got our chance and took it. We just never gave up.”
DeLoury went 2-for-4 with two RBI at the plate and also earned the win on the mound, tossing five innings and allowing just one hit with five strikeouts. Angelo McCullough (2-for-4) and Keegan O’Connor (1-for-4) added one RBI each.
For Saugus, Joey Dusabalo led the way with three RBI. CJ Graffeo (1-for-3) and Ryan Beliveau (1-for-3) also had hits. Senior Todd Tringale pitched a solid game, tossing seven innings and allowing five runs on eight hits with six strikeouts.
“We got off to a great start, which was great, but then we could execute in certain situations for the rest of the game,” said Saugus coach Joe Luis. “We were trying to get that fifth run throughout the game, and we missed on two bunts and couldn’t capitalize. But that’s high school baseball.”
It was all Saugus at the start. The Sachems jumped all over Fenwick starter Jake Miano (2/3 inning, four runs, two hits, two strikeouts), loading up the bases in the top of the first inning. With two outs, Dusabalo stepped to the plate and smashed a 3-RBI double over the left fielder’s head to put the Sachems up 3-0. The Dusabalo hit knocked Miano from the game, as senior Cory Bright (1 1/3 innings, no runs, no hits, one strikeout) stepped in to finish off the inning.
One batter later, Dusabalo came in to score on a Fenwick error to give Saugus a 4-0 lead.
That was it for scoring until the bottom of the fifth, when Fenwick started to chip away. An error, an infield hit and a sacrifice bunt put runners on second and third with one out. After McCullough brought a run home with a RBI groundout to make it 4-1, O’Connor stepped in and laced a RBI double to cut the deficit to two runs.
Then came the seventh inning. The Crusaders moved runners to first and third with two outs, then scored a run on an error to make it 4-3. Next up was DeLoury, who turned on an inside pitch and launched a 2-RBI double to the left-field fence that brought home the tying and winning runs.
With the loss, Saugus finishes the season at 15-7.
As for Fenwick (16-6) next up will be a Division 3 North semifinal matchup with No. 8 Swampscott (14-8), who knocked off No. 1 Austin Prep in the other quarterfinal game.
“From experience, I can say that winning a game in this fashion really gives a team a lot of momentum going into the next game,” Steeves said. “We’re going to enjoy this one and then we’ll have all hands on deck for the next game.”
The time and date of the Fenwick-Swampscott game has yet to be determined.