Third time the charm as North Andover avenges two losses to Lawrence

HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL

North Andover pitcher Dylan Lawrence is shown reacting after striking out a Lawrence batter to end an inning. North Andover visited Lawrence for a high school tournament baseball game. PHOTOS BY JIM DAVIS/BOSTON HERALD

North Andover left fielder Cam Bodenrader flips over after he misjudged a fly ball hit at him and tried to recover but coukdn’t make the catch. North Andover visited Lawrence for a high school tournament baseball game.

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By Tom Mulherin

tmulheri@gmail.com

LAWRENCE >> After leaving 12 runners on base in its first meeting with Lawrence and dropping both regular season games to it, the North Andover baseball team didn’t waste any opportunity in Round 3 against its Merrimack Valley Conference foe with the season on the line Monday night.

Sparked by seven runs in the first two innings and a dominant outing on the mound from senior Bentley-commit Dylan Lawrence, the 20th-seeded Scarlet Knights (17-6) ran away with a 9-0 upset win over the No. 13 Lancers in the Div. 1 state tournament’s first round.

Lawrence fanned 10 in a complete-game shutout, allowing just four hits and two walks in an efficient performance. His 3-for-4 day at the plate, with two doubles and three RBI, also paced a lineup that featured three multi-hit performances.

North Andover, playing with a chip on its shoulder for earning a low seed, heads to No. 4 King Philip for the second round.

“We didn’t swing the bat in the first two games,” said Scarlet Knights head coach Todd Dulin. “They’re a great team, league champions and all that, and they’ve got a lot of kids that can play. But the first two games, we just didn’t (hit). … We took advantage early on, just getting guys in on some big hits.”

“Energy is everything,” Dylan Lawrence added. “From the first pitch — honestly, when we got here — we had good energy. … We kind of keep the momentum in our dugout and kind of just keep playing downhill.”

North Andover jumped all over Lawrence early, as Zach Faro (3-for-4, double, two runs, two RBI) and Jake Jackson (3-for-4, double, three runs) each reached base to lead off the first inning. Mike Phelps (1-for-3, RBI) pushed them into scoring position, and Dylan Lawrence pulled a two-run double over the right fielder’s head to get on the board.

The first two batters hit into outs in the second inning, but the next six reached safely in a five-run frame for a comfortable cushion. Nine-hitter Ben Iglesias started it with a single and a steal, followed by singles from Faro, Jackson and Phelps before another Dylan Lawrence RBI-double.

An error and a balk gave North Andover two more from there for a 7-0 lead. It scored four total runs against Lawrence in the first two meetings.

“It’s awesome,” Dylan Lawrence said of the five-run showing with two outs. “It started with the bottom of the order, (Iglesias) got on with a two-out single and that kind of just gives us energy. Like I said, keep that momentum in our dugout. That would’ve been a one-two-three inning for them, and it would’ve given (momentum) to them. But we stayed down with our foot on the pedal and just kept going.”

Much of what the senior brought on the mound came to no surprise for Dulin.

He struck out the side in both the second and the fifth innings — including two strikeouts with a runner in scoring position in the fifth. Six of the seven shutout innings he tossed needed 14 or less pitches to get through, and he held the Lancers to a 0-for-8 mark with runners in scoring position.

“He had a day,” Dulin said. “He had a day he’ll remember. … He’s been nasty.”

Together, the top four hitters in North Andover’s lineup — Faro, Jackson, Phelps and Dylan Lawrence — combined for 10 hits and six RBI. Dylan Lawrence felt a responsibility to contribute the way he did to help the Scarlet Knights advance.

He didn’t disappoint.

“I’m a captain of this team, people look up to me,” he said. “So I just kind of represent North Andover and kind of help my team however I can.”