With two homeruns in two games, Sam August ’10 has helped Andover to destroy the competition, with 31 combined runs in two dominating victories over Bridgton Academy and Tabor Academy. “I think we did a good job making pitchers work. Everyone had good at bats and didn’t give pitchers easy innings. We did a good job making the pitchers throw fastballs and capitalizing on the opportunities,” said Tom Hamel ’10. Andover squared off against Bridgton Academy Saturday. With the score tied after the first at 1-1, the Andover bats set fire, blazing the trail to a six run second inning. Chris Cameron started the attack with a walk and a steal. Cameron then scored on a single hit by post-graduate Tom Sullivan ’10. August then followed up with his first homerun, scoring two runs. Andover continued the onslaught with four more runs in the game to propel them to a 7-1 lead. With a grand slam in the fourth inning, Captain Bennett Carroccio ’10 led the charge in an eventual 7 run inning that sealed the deal. Jack Doyle ’10 got the start for Andover, and pitched an impressive game, with one earned run in three innings. Tom Palleschi ’12 relieved Doyle, pitching two scoreless innings and Hamel closed the game with two more scoreless innings. Andover went on to win 14-2. “I think the key to the team’s pitching success was the preseason plan that all of our pitchers followed. Starting back in February, we have all been on a pretty strict throwing schedule of long toss and practice bullpen sessions. Our coach made it clear that pitching and defense were going to be our focus as a team this year, so he has been working with the pitching rotation a lot,” said Doyle. “By the time our first game rolled around, I felt completely prepared to throw on both sides of the plate and use all of my offspeed pitches. It’s like being in mid-season form on the first game,” he continued. Andover improved to 2-0 on the season with a win against Tabor on Wednesday. Once again Andover’s bats led the charge, with a 17 run performance. Zac Elder ’11 started off the second inning with a homerun, eventually leading to a seven run inning. “In both games the second inning was huge, demoralizing the opponents and setting the tone for the rest of the game. We’ve had a lot more power this season and big hits with runners on base have carried us in the first two games of the season,” said Elder. August continued his success with another homerun in the fifth inning and Cameron and Carroccio each added three hits. Lefty Fred Shepard ’10 got the start for Andover, overpowering Tabor with five strikeouts and only two earned runs in four innings. Hamel once again came on in relief with only one earned run in two innings. August shut down Tabor in the seventh, sealing the 17-4 victory. This weekend, Andover will face Belmont Hill. Last year, Andover defeated the non-league opponent in walk-off fashion. Elder said, “Nevertheless it’s still important. They’re always a good team and it should be a competitive game.”
