Josh Bryant, Plymouth North blank Whitman-Hanson, 2-0
PLYMOUTH — Entering Tuesday, Plymouth North’s baseball squad found itself in a good position, sitting second in the MIAA’s Division 2 power rankings.
Yet, the Blue Eagles still had a crucial game against a perennial Patriot League rival.
Thanks to senior ace Josh Bryant, they were able to register another impressive win. The right-hander fired a complete-game shutout, surrendering only two hits as Plymouth North held on for a 2-0 victory over Whitman-Hanson at home.
“Feels really good,” Bryant said. “(Whitman-Hanson) always gives us two tough games every year. They’re a really solid team, well-coached, so I knew I had to bring it. I think I did really well, happy with my performance.”
The game turned out to be a duel between Bryant and Whitman-Hanson’s Ryan Baker. After two quick frames to open the action, Plymouth North (10-2) sent the bottom of its order to the plate in the third, looking to strike.
The Blue Eagles used small ball to plate a pair of runs, with the big hit coming off the bat of Michael Hannon. With a runner on, the senior roped a double into the left field corner to give his team a 1-0 advantage. Will Novak knocked in a run of his own after grounding into a fielder’s choice to put the Blue Eagles ahead, 2-0.
“Mikey Hannon, missing his bunt and then getting a double,” chuckled Plymouth North coach Dwayne Follette. “That’s good coaching right there … that’s one of those three-pointers that go in, and you’re like ‘What?’ ”
After his lineup provided him a cushion, Bryant continued to deal. The senior carried a no-hitter into the sixth inning, before Whitman-Hanson’s David McNaught reached on an infield single after lining one off the pitcher’s leg. Despite the hiccup, Bryant managed to retire the next three hitters, preserving the lead.
“He must have gotten ahead of 70 percent of the batters, which is big for him,” Follette said of Bryant. “He got to use his breaking ball, and he pitched awesome.”
With the tying run at the plate in the top of the seventh inning, Bryant waited for the sign, and fired. He induced a grounder to second for the final out, and the Blue Eagles celebrated.
Bryant threw 74 pitches, 52 of them for strikes during his shutout.
Baker tossed six innings for Whitman-Hanson (9-5), allowing two runs on four hits while striking out four in a strong effort.
The road doesn’t get much easier for Plymouth North, now in the thick of its vaunted Patriot League schedule.
“Tomorrow, we go play Frankie Niles, who’s a great coach at Hingham,” said Follette. “Now we’ve got to compete again tomorrow. So it’s easy, we have no time to rest. Then we’ve got Scituate coming in on Thursday. I like it, because our kids are just playing. They don’t even have time to think. Hopefully, we just keep our momentum going.”
Plymouth North’s Killian Murphy reacts after crossing home plate with the first run during a 2-0 baseball win over Whitman-Hanson. (Chris Christo/Boston Herald)