Sports

DWS clinches region

• Sophomore Kevin McCrary strikes out four of the final five batters he faces and produces the game-tying hit to deliver a Region 3-AAA title for the Deerfield baseball team Friday.

Paul Dehner Jr.

ALBANY — Walking through the dugout after the game, Deerfield-Windsor sophomore Kevin McCrary received word he was summoned to talk to The Herald.

“Seriously?” he asked.

That’s right, Kevin.

Extinguish a Southland rally with back-to-back strikeouts in relief of starter Justin Lott. Knock in the game-tying run during a furious two-out rally in the bottom of the sixth. Send back the top three hitters in the seventh to earn the Knights a 6-5 win for their first region title in three years.

Yeah, it’s time to talk.

“Kevin, he won’t say it, but he is good,” Lott said. “He is a modest guy, but I had faith in him coming in. He stepped up this year big-time.”

Without him, Deerfield would be playing in a one-game playoff on Monday.

Instead, the Knights now hold home field advantage throughout the Class AAA playoffs.

“That was a lot different than any game I’ve been in this year,” McCrary said. “That was crazy.”

The full house that encircled DWS field throughout a classic Friday afternoon would agree.

Southland’s Michael Swain appeared to have grabbed control of the game when his two-run home run off Lott was followed by a solo shot by Mason Greene to provide a 5-3 lead in the sixth.

Swain finished 3-for-4 with four RBI.

On the mound, he had retired 10 batters in a row and after a lucky bounce off his glove for a double play sent the Knights’ top two hitters back to the dugout in the sixth, DWS appeared destined for defeat.

But with two outs, the Knights pieced together three hits from Steven Mann, Jake Moore and McCrary around a walk to Banks Kinslow to tie the game at 5-5.

By the time Moore slid into home with the go-ahead run after the game’s only error was committed on a ground ball to first, the Knights’ dugout exploded as another comeback was completed.

“We are a strong team,” said Lott, who pitched 5 1/3 innings, allowing five runs and striking out four. “We never count ourselves out. We have done it I don’t know how many times this year.”

Coached by Rod Murray, DWS came back from down five in the final inning last week against FPD.

But for a team that has watched Southland steal the region title away the past two years, this felt better than any non-region comeback.

“I think that is probably going to be one of the highlights of my career, that right there,” Lott said. “Winning this my senior year is awesome.

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