Lebanon — So much happened in the eighth inning Thursday that Lyman Memorial baseball coach Marty Gomez almost forgot about a run-saving diving catch made by his center fielder, Spencer Merritt, way back in the sixth.

"That's probably going to get overlooked," Gomez said.

In what was a pitchers' showcase for seven innings, Montville's Griffin Pontbriant and Lyman's Pat Quealy authoritatively changing speeds and hitting the slightest of corners, Lyman then came out on top of the scramble to see which team could score the most runs in the eighth.

Jonah Person's game-winning single with two outs in the bottom of the inning gave Lyman a 4-3 win over Montville, earning each team a share of the Eastern Connecticut Conference Division III title. Montville, which could have won the division outright with a victory, led 3-1 entering the bottom of the eighth.

"Games like this are a lot of fun," said Montville coach Steve Stonoha, whose team is 15-4 overall, 7-1 in the ECC. "It gives our kids a chance to play in tight games. It puts them in a situation where they can look back and say, 'I've been in this situation. I know what to do. I know how to calm my nerves.'

"But I don't like sharing anything. I really don't, especially when it comes to sports."

With the game tied at 1-1 after 7, Montville scored twice in the top of the eighth, loading the bases with singles by Ryan Champagne and Colby Miner and a hit batter, Sean Murallo. That marked the end of Quealy's stint, having reached his 110-pitch limit.

Chas Terni greeted left-handed reliever Alex Lotts with an RBI single to push Montville into the lead and Pontbriant walked to score Miner with the second run, with the Indians sending eight men to the plate.

But Lyman chipped away at Pontbriant, Montville's ace, who started the inning having thrown just 82 pitches and was soon approaching his pitch limit, as well.

Merritt was hit by a pitch, Quealy reached on an error and Lotts ripped a single up the middle to load the bases. With two outs, Lyman's Tony Incontro singled to right to score Merritt, and Cole Habeeb followed with perhaps the at-bat of the game. Habeeb fouled off a number of pitches, working the count full against Pontbriant before drawing a walk to tie the game 3-3.

Person, the No. 8 hitter, singled on the first pitch to score Lotts with the game-winner.

"Habeeb had an unbelievable at-bat," said Gomez, whose team has won four divisional titles in the last five seasons. "Against that pitcher? Unbelievable. Just barely getting any type of piece of anything. He must have choked up halfway.

"It's like the baseball gods looked down on us today. They shined on us a little bit. I won't forget that one. ... There's no clock. You've gotta get outs. Our kids battled."

Both teams scored a run in the first inning. Nick Calash homered to give Montville the lead and Quealy singled and scored on a double by Lotts in the bottom of the inning.

After that the pitchers took over. Pontbriant struck out 10 and walked one, scattering nine hits. Quealy allowed eight hits, striking out seven, walking two and hitting a batter.

Montville had runners on first and third with one out in the sixth when Merritt came up with the diving catch on a drive to center by Murallo. Lyman then doubled off the runner at third, who had already taken off for home.

"It isn't like they weren't motivated," Stonoha said of Montville. "It's good to throw a banner up on the wall."

Said Stonoha of Pontbriant's effort: "He's our guy. He's our horse. If he has pitches left in the tank, I'm not going with anybody else. It was his game. He knows I have the utmost confidence in him. Off Griff, there's never going to be a team that's going to light him up; they're going to have to get walks, seeing-eye singles. They definitely were patient and they battled."

v.fulkerson@theday.com