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Andover American Little League delivered a memorable run before falling in the third and deciding game of the District 14 championship series this week to North Andover West.
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The buzz was clear all around the ballpark when the towering star stepped to the plate. And Brandon Marti did not disappoint.
With two outs in the bottom of the third, E.J. Perry beat out a throw for an infield single to send Marti to the plate. With plenty of chatter surrounding the at-bat, Marti launched a home run over the wall in center field, nearly landing in the snack shack.
That homer helped lead Andover to a 3-1 victory over North Andover West in the second game of their District 14 championship series on Sunday.
"We have come to expect that out of Brandon," said Andover coach Don Hunt. "There's been so much talk about him and stories in the paper, you can see everyone a little more excited. He has come through for us so many times, we rely on him."
But Marti didn't just get it done at the plate. He also threw a complete game, allowing just three hits. He struck out five and walked just the one batter, throwing 47 of his 72 pitches for strikes. But that very nearly did not occur.
"Brandon pulled a muscle in his back at the plate," said Hunt. "He came to me and told me his back hurt. But the team asked if he had nine more outs in him, and he stepped up."
Marti did need a little help, and it came from center fielder Ryan Bessette.
With a runner on first and no outs in the sixth and final inning, North Andover No. 3 hitter Chris Bosco blasted a ball to dead center field that looked like it would tie the game. But Bessette moved back and hauled in the catch just above the wall. He snagged a line drive a batter later.
Andover snuck an insurance run in the fifth, when Perry singled, went to second on a wild pitch and scored on a single for Dylan Zhang. Perry (2 for 3) was the game's lone batter with multiple hits.
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Andover could not repeat that magic a day later, and fell to North Andover West 18-5 on Monday in the deciding game of the District 14 championship series.
"They're a good baseball team and we're good as well," Andover head coach Don Hunt said. "They got hot and that happens. But we have a group of classy kids that played hard to the end. It's not about baseball but life's lessons, and I felt we represented Andover well."
Andover took the lead 4-2 in the first. E.J. Perry's double and Tom Johst's two-run line homer to left-center field temporarily flipped the script.
Brandon Marti did yeoman's duty in defeat, battling through a back injury that forced him to play first base for the first time while getting a leadoff single and scoring his team's first run.
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A three-run homer by Dylan Zhang cut the lead to two runs in the fourth, but that was as close as Andover would get in an 11-7 win over North Andover West in the first game of the District 14 championship series on Saturday.
Darin Hunt, the son of coach Don Hunt, added a home run while E.J. Perry and Myles Badley each added key hits for Andover. Brandon Marti excelled at shortstop.
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Brandon Marti allowed just a single hit in three innings, and made a stellar play at shortstop as Andover advanced to the championship series with a 9-0 win over Billerica National last Thursday. Tom Johst added a home run and 1 2/3 innings of perfect relief while E.J. Perry hit a pair of homers and added 1 1/3 third perfect on the mound.
