GREAT BARRINGTON – The Southwick-Tolland Regional baseball team did the unthinkable.
No. 9 Southwick upset top-seeded Monument Mountain on the road in the Western Massachusetts Division II tournament 11-5 Monday to earn an unlikely trip to the semifinals.
Southwick (13-9) built a 9-0 lead through six innings, and staved off a late rally by Monument (15-6). The opposition scored all of its runs in the bottom of the sixth.
“This was a huge, huge win for us,” Southwick coach Tim Karetka said. “Monument is a really good team. They have a strong lineup one through nine. It was huge for us to go up to their place and get a win, and beat another Berkshire team.”
Southwick opened the tournament with a 9-6 win over eighth-seeded Hoosac Valley.
Rams’ Kyle Manley (2-for-2) delivered a big RBI triple in the third inning, was hit by a pitch, and walked; Vinnie Fortini had two hits and three RBIs; Nick Fortini had a key RBI double in the seventh; and Bob Hamel collected two hits, one of which was a double, and two RBIs.
“We just really hit well today,” Southwick coach Tim Karetka said. “We hit well with guys on, worked counts, and were just really, really, really good at the plate.”
Rams’ pitcher Andrew Mitchell earned a victory on the mound with a complete-game effort. Mitchell allowed nine hits, five runs (four earned), and had five strikeouts.
Bryan Shiel made a phenomenal defensive play in the seventh for Southwick.
