Milton High Baseball Shuts Out Stoughton 5-0

On a weekend that was already special with Prom and Graduation, the Milton High School baseball team (14-7) started Friday with a dominating 5-0 win over Stoughton (12-9) in the Division 2 South Sectional tournament.

Playing off the old adage of getting hot at the right time, the Wildcats played their best in every facet of the home game.  Senior hurler Mike Bortolotti was a force in a six inning, two-hit outing and the Milton bats led by Jack Davis and Kevin Lamere were moving.

Bortolotti dictated the pace, striking out nine Stoughton batters. The right-hander controlled his opponents with just two walks and four one, two, three innings.

Bortolotti did it all with a pitch count in the mid-70s, "which is fantastic in a game like this," said coach Ted Curley.

Bortolotti was happy to perform this well in a game he had been waiting for all week. "It's a huge win," said Bortolotti. "I can't even explain it."

The winning pitcher was helped on the mound by his defense; the sunshine at Cunningham Park didn't hurt either.

"The nice weather was great and the defense helped keep me mentally stable," Bortolotti said.

The Wildcats' offense was also a source of stability for Bortolotti. The scoring started in the second inning when Davis and Lamere knocked back-to-back singles. With the next at bat, Steve Farmer joined them on base after a walk. Brad Taugher, who pinch ran for Davis, reached home after an overthrown attempt to catch him leading off third base. Lamere eventually made it home after Derek Curley hit into an out.

In the third inning, the scoring continued. Mike Muse slammed a double before being scored by another double from Willie Archibald. Archibald scored on the next at bat, when Davis was thrown out trying to turn a single into a double.

Matt O'Neill batted in the final run in the sixth.

Milton's offensive production against Stoughton's Trevor Derochea (two strikeouts in six and a third innings) was assisted by a postseason rule change. The Wildcats, who play in the wood bat Bay State Conference, will be swinging metal for the remainder of the year. Curley said the transition from wood to metal was a definite plus for his batters.

With the win, Milton set a date with second-seeded Duxbury (18-2) for Monday. "We know coming in they're going to be nasty," Curley said.

The Wildcats will try to offset a tough opponent using the strength that has carried them through the year, pitching. Even with Bortolotti out of consideration, Curley still has a handful of competitive hurlers, including Archibald who closed the Stoughton game with a one, two, three inning.

Bortolotti admitted he doesn't know much about Duxbury beside their record, but knows his team can hang in there. "We know they got a bye, but we'll be right there with them," Bortolotti said.