While the rest of the country was getting ready to celebrate our nation’s birthday today, Dedham American Legion Post 18 was giving manager Dave Brown a birthday present of his own last night – a win over his hometown of Norwood.
Mac Jacobsen and Devan Jones each had four hits at the top of the Dedham lineup and Matt Karis backed his complete-game effort on the mound with a three-run homer in the first inning to power a 10-2 victory for Post 18.
“My family was here tonight and the kids knew it,” said Brown, whose team pounded out a 13-7 win in the first meeting on June 23. “I put a little extra pressure on Karis before the game and told him we needed to win on my birthday.”
The win was essential in keeping Dedham’s postseason hopes flickering as it moved within five points of fifth-place Norfolk in District 6 West at 5-9. Norwood, which had won five straight coming in, squandered a chance to reclaim second place, remaining in a tie for third with Foxboro with 18 points at 9-5, one point behind Needham.
“We can’t make too much of a win and we can’t make too much of loss,’’ said Norwood manager Paul Samargedlis. “There are some teams in the this league that when they beat us that’s their World Series, I’d rather play for a title than call a certain game your title. A season is a body of work. But Dedham has come out and beat us twice – they have our number.”
Dedham led 3-2 when a rain and lightning delay halted play for nearly an hour with two outs in the top of the second. It was all Post 18 when the game resumed as Dedham got a run in its half of the second then broke the game open with a six-run third.
Karis began things with a walk and Chase Davenport singled with one out. John Gorman and Andrew LoRusso then hit consecutive sharp grounders that ate up Norwood infielders, bring home a run and loaded the bases for Rob Zarthar, who walked to force in a run to make it 6-2.
That brought up Jacobsen, who provided the inning’s big blow, a two-run double to deep center that ended Rydzewski’s night. Jones followed with an RBI single through a drawn in infield off reliever Ryan White and run-scoring balk capped the outburst for a 10-2 advantage.
Jacobsen and Jones combined to score four runs and knock in four. Jacobsen’s bid for a fifth hit was denied when Sean Keady made a sensational diving catch in center to end the sixth.
“We couldn’t keep them off the bases,” said Samragedlis of Jacobsen and Jones. “Rydzewski wasn’t sharp and he’s been sharp all year so if that’s his bad outing, fine. We didn’t come to play. We showed up without our helmets and if you show up without your helmets are your heads really screwed on straight?”
It was more than enough support for Karis, who had a shaky start as Keady, Kyle McCabe and Alex LiDonni strung together singles to fill the bases with no outs to begin the game. But Post 70 did get much out of it as Gorman turned a nifty 5-3 double play and Karis got a ground out to end the inning down just 1-0.
Karis gave himself a boost with his bat in the first. With Jacobsen and Jones on after singles, Karis waited on a Rydzewski curveball and pummeled it well over the left field fence for a 3-1lead.
Norwood got one back in the second when Cory Sennott tripled on a ball lost in the darkening sky and scored on a ground out, but Jacobsen and Jones answered with a single and RBI double with two outs in the bottom half.
The triple was the last hit Karis allowed until two outs in the seventh when Pat Eckhardt singled to left, retiring 17-of-18 batters in one stretch, a hit batter in the fifth his only indiscretion as the Gettysburg hurler struck out seven and walked none.
“I don’t know how to explain it, (the Norwood games are) the two best defensive games we have played all year,” said Brown. “Karis got into a little bit of a groove, I think the home run helped his confidence. He’s been a little gun shy at the plate lately, I put him back in the four-hole tonight and he responded.”
While Dedham is off until an important date with Westwood Sunday night, Norwood must bounce back tonight for another rivalry game with a special 8 p.m. July 4th matchup against unbeaten Walpole down at the Balch.
“I said it was the worst game I’ve coached the first time we played Dedham and this is 1A but I still think we can go out (tonight) and get a ‘W’,” said Samargdelis. “Sometime, something like this helps. Now we understand we can’t start playing in the fourth inning.”
