Vikings make quick work of Turner and the Colonels
East Lyme — Oh, the temptation. Picture it: Pregame on Friday afternoon under a steady rain. Jack Biggs, the baseball coach at East Lyme High School, knew his team would be facing Ledyard’s Ken Turner, one of the best pitchers in Connecticut.
It wouldn’t have been hard for Biggs to approach Ledyard coach Scott Chiasson and tell him the conditions were just to perilous to play, thereby avoiding a potentially tough afternoon.
Instead, the Vikings played on.
And scored 11 runs.
And mercied No. 6 Ledyard, 11-0, in a matchup of Eastern Connecticut Conference teams. Ledyard is 11-3.
Trystan Levesque ended the game with a grand slam in the bottom of the fifth inning, invoking the mercy rule. By then, Turner had long since left the game with discomfort in his lower back.
“First, I hope Kenny Turner is OK,” Biggs said. “He’s one of the best pitchers in the state.”
Chiasson said he knew Turner was battling the back ailment and wasn’t sure how long he would last. He exited the game in the third inning.
“It’s been a problem since the Waterford game (about 10 days ago),” Chiasson said.
And to think Biggs caught a wry grin before the game and wondered how many baserunners the Vikings (8-7) could muster off Turner. Turns out Ledyard pitchers allowed more runs Friday (11) than they had to date all season (10).
“It’s been a process for us,” Biggs said. “It’s not an easy league. There’s a lot of good pitching. But we are figuring it out.”
East Lyme took a 1-0 lead in the third off Turner when Tommy Mason and Jake Schelkly singled off Turner — two of the hardest hit balls he’s allowed all season. Owen Robbins’ RBI single made it 1-0.
Turner was gone by the time Drew Menghi doubled and scored Nolan Connolly with the second run. Luke Leonard’s RBI single and Levesque’s two-run triple made it 5-0.
But that was nothing compared to Levesque’s grand slam, a shot deep down the right field line.
“We’ve lost in every way possible already this season,” Levesque said. “We’ve worked really hard to try to turn this around.”
Robbins had three hits for the Vikings, who have a big week upcoming, including a home game Tuesday night with rival Waterford in an ECC Division I game. The Lancers beat the Vikings 1-0 earlier this season.
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