NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. — North Andover used a relentless hitting attack to knock around Wilmington pitching for 15 runs and 11 hits during a two-inning stretch.
The Knights sent a combined 25 batters to the plate in the fourth and fifth innings and ran away with a 17-2 win in the first round of the Division 2 North sectionals.
No. 2 North Andover (17-4) moves into Monday's quarterfinal round where it will host No. 7 Burlington (15-6) at 4 p.m.
"The last two times were played them (Wilmington), they were close games so were weren't expecting this kind of a blowout," said Mike Weisman, who stranded seven runners through the first four innings while nursing a 2-0 lead.
The sophomore lefty's biggest challenges came in the second inning when Wilmington had runners on second and third with no out.
But Weisman (4 innings, 4 hits, 4 strikeouts) snuffed out the rally by striking out the next batter on a nasty curve, then foiled a suicide squeeze attempt. A harmless groundout ended the threat.
In the third inning, Weisman stuck out the final batter to get out of a bases-loaded jam.
"He finds a way to click it up a gear and he doesn't get bothered," said coach Todd Dulin. "When he pitched out of that jam (in the second) everyone came in fired up."
But, to that point, North Andover's offense was merely a flicker — scratching out single runs in the second and third innings, respectively, before the fire exploded in the fourth.
Mike Levy went a blazing 5 for 5 and opened the scoring in the second when his singled delivered Aaron Brunette (2 for 3), who opened the inning with a triple.
"Today everyone was making contact and that is something that we have not been seeing this year," said Levy, who jumpstarted North Andover's eight-run fifth with a lead off single.
Levy had two hits in the fourth and one in the fifth.
The Knights sent 13 batters to the plate in the fourth. Levy's two-run single, in his second at bat of the inning, and Paul Pollano's double highlighted the onslaught.
The North Andover bats were just as explosive in the fifth when 12 players came to the plate in a seven-run inning. Brandon Walsh had the big hit, a two-run, ground-rule double.
North Andover 17, Wilmington 2
Division 2 North first round
Wilmington (2): Ryan Searles cf 3-0-0, Jon Spur 2b/lf 3-0-0, Mike Scola rf 3-1-1. Dan Cushing 1b 2-0-1, Jackson 1b 0-0-0, Mike Murphy p 3-0-1, Butters ss 1-0-0, Nick Boutoures 3b 2-0-1, Liam Gately 1-0-0, Steve Stewart dh/p 2-0-0, Chris Frisson 2-1-1, Sean Hanley lf 1-0-0, Jeff Kannally p 0-0-0, Brad Meuse c 1-0-0, Scifo ss 2-0-0, Lunt 2b 0-0-0, Pat Parker c 0-0-0. Totals 26-2-5
North Andover (17): Ryan Sifferlen cf 2-2-1, Brad Patnaude ss 3-2-2, Leavitt pr 0-1-0, Mike Weisman p/1b 4-2-1, Connor Walsh 3b 3-2-2, Dennis Pellegrino ph 1-0-0, Aaron Brunette cf 3-2-2, Nick Waszczuk rf 1-1-0, Mike Levy c 5-1-5, David Foote pr 0-1-0, Alec Jillson dh 2-1-1, Brandon Walsh dh 2-1-1, Paul Pollano 1b 3-0-2, Karan Jhaveri pr 0-0-0, Cam Couillard p 1-0-0, Juan Areces lf 2-1-0, Matt Hogan lf 0-0-0, Nick Blanks 2b 0-0-0. Totals 32-17-17
RBI: NA — Levy 3, C. Walsh 3, Weisman 2, Sifferlen 2, B. Walsh 2, Pollano, Jillson, Patnaude
WP: Weisman; LP: Murphy
Wilmington (10-11):0âÇ0âÇ0âÇ0âÇ0âÇ1âÇ1 — âÇ2
North Andover (17-4):0âÇ1âÇ1âÇ8âÇ7âÇ0âÇ0 — 17
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