Trojans at the top

SACO — For at least one day, the Thornton Academy baseball team is at the top of the mountain. Not just the best team in York County, but the best team in Western Class A.

And the Golden Trojans got there Tuesday afternoon by catching its Moby Dick, a win over a top Cumberland County competitor, with its 10-2 win over Portland.

As of Tuesday night, Thornton was at the top of the Maine Principal Association Heal Point Standings with a 5-2 record.

Entering the game, Portland was the third ranked team in Western Class A. Thornton will now hope the Bulldogs continue its strong season so the Trojans can collect more Heal Points.

“This is a big win for us,” Thornton Academy head coach Greg Paradis said. “[Portland] has a few wins right now, and I think they’re a very decent team. They’re young, and they’re trying to find their identity I think they compete. They had a tough one today, but they ran into a very good pitcher. We’re hoping they get a ton more wins now, now that we’ve played them already. Hopefully they can give us a ton of [Heal Points]. This is a big game for us.”

Thornton has a tough week ahead, playing a rescheduled game with Deering on Saturday at Hadlock Field in Portland, as well as a contest with Bonny Eagle on May 18. The Scots are currently in fourth place, while Deering is in eighth place in the Heal Point standings.

“This is big week for us,” Paradis said. “These next four games are big. They’re all fairly big, but these next four games are going to be telling for us. There’s a lot of parody in the league, and you don’t know how teams are going to react. You can only take care of yourself, make sure you can make plays defensively and that you throw strikes and you’re aggressive at the plate, and that’s what we did today.”

The Trojans cemented the win with production offensively at the top of its lineup, along with strong pitching by Keegan Sullivan.

Sullivan, a senior, struck out seven hitters, while allowing no earned runs on three hits. He fooled the Bulldogs throughout the game with a sneaky fastball, along with his out-pitch, a long, sweeping curveball.

“I tried to work on my first pitch strikes today,” Sullivan said. “Keep the hitters a little bit off-balance with my curveball, just pitch to contact today.”

The win was Sullivan’s second of the season. He also threw a one-hitter in a 2-0 win against Massabesic on April 24.

Sullivan said he doesn’t hold one win any higher than the other.

“They’re both the same,” Sullivan said. “A win is a win to me.”

Trojans shortstop Sam Canales led the team offensively, going 3 for 4 at the plate, collecting two doubles, a triple, and three RBIs, as well as scoring three runs.

“I was just sitting on fastballs,” Canales said. “It just felt good today.”

Thornton opened the scoring by taking a 2-0 lead in the second inning, on an RBI single to center field by Steve Trask, who later scored on an RBI double by Jon Dupee.

The floodgates opened for Thornton’s offense in the fourth, when the Trojans collected six runs off Portland starter Adam Gould. Canales had the hit of the inning, smacking his two-run triple over the head of centerfielder Caleb Fraser. Canales, along with Trask, would later score on a two-run single by Alex Richardson-Newton, who would be plated later on an RBI single by Zach Sheehan.

After knocking in Alex Jacques on an RBI double in the fifth, Canales scored two batters later on a single by Fred Randall.

Canales said the performance by the Trojans gives the team plenty of confidence.

“A lot of confidence,” Canales said. “We started slow in the preseason, we weren’t hitting very well. Lately it seems we’ve been coming around and hitting the ball.”

Portland scored both of its runs on errors. Kyle Reichert scored from third after Sullivan misfired a pickoff throw to Richardson-Newton at first base during the fifth, and Scott Briggs scored after an errant throw from third to first by Ryan Leach.