Post 70 Finishes the Season in Historic Fashion

Sometimes there is a moment in sports that becomes both magical and unforgettable. A moment that truly defines a team, and makes you believe in something beyond the game itself.

The Norwood Legion Post 70 baseball team had one of those moments yesterday.

With Post 70 facing elimination Tuesday afternoon against Hingham, trailing by six runs in the bottom of the twelfth, all seemed lost. But like the night before - when Norwood scored six runs off South Attleboro in the ninth but fell short - they rallied, and this time the story would have a historic ending.

Brandon Davis smacked a two-run single with two outs in the twelfth, to propel Norwood to an incredible seven-run inning to beat Hingham 13-12 and advance Post 70 to face off against South Attleboro later in the night.

“When I realized there was runners on second and third, I just had a smile knowing if I got my pitch I could win the game,” said Davis. 

Hingham had tied the game in the top of the ninth when they were able to score two runs to make the score 6-6.

Second baseman Jordan Davis got the start against Hingham and pitched extremely well in one of his only starts of the year. Davis went more than six innings and allowed four runs and scattered seven hits in a heroic effort for his team.

“With Jordan going six plus and we got Cath (Brendan Cathcart) up 6-4, I thought we were good,” said manager Paul Samargedlis.

But nothing is easy in this tournament, as Hingham rallied late and tied the game at six before adding on six runs in the top of the twelfth.

In the twelfth, Davis led off the inning by hitting a shot to the left field wall but Hingham’s Rob Madden made a spectacular catch, which left the appearance of no chance of a comeback for Norwood.

But PJ King reached on an error and Sean O’Neil and Austin Glaser singled before Sean Keady smacked a two-run double to make it a 12-8 game. Chris O’Brien then smacked a two-run double. Suddenly it was 12-10 and Norwood was in business.

“I said to myself this time we aren’t coming up short,” said Samargedlis after the win.

John Gorman followed O’Brien with a single and Tyler Gover then added an RBI single to make it 12-11. A Norwood ground out moved the runners into scoring position setting the stage for Brandon Davis and his miracle heroics, as his single scored Gorman and a sliding Gover for the winning run as pandemonium ensued.

“I tuned up before my last at-bat (fly ball out) thinking that was my last at-bat in playing organized baseball,” said Brandon Davis. "So it was awesome to get up there and give it one last go.”

“And for him (Davis) I couldn’t be happier,” said Samargedlis. “It happened for all my kids.”

In the nightcap the Post 70 magic ran out, but not before Gover pitched a complete game gem against South Attleboro’s ace Eddie Fitzpatrick.

South Attleboro’s Sean Weyland knocked in an RBI double in the bottom of the ninth for the walk-off 4-3 win over Norwood, ending Post 70’s season.

“What they did in that first game, no one is going to remember in ten years who won the Final Eight,” said Samargedlis. “They will still talk about how this team was down six in the bottom of the twelfth and refused to get knocked out of the tournament.”