WATERBORO — A game that didn’t feature much hitting ”“ or action ”“ between Biddeford and Massabesic came down to the final out Wednesday. A Mustang rally came up just short on a play at the plate as the Tigers held on for a 2-1 win at Massabesic High School in both teams’ season opener.

Massabesic entered the bottom of the ninth down 2-0 and with just one hit in the game. Sean Adams then led off the frame with a single through the left side of the infield that knocked out Biddeford starter Nate Huot. Andrew Wicklund followed by drawing a walk on reliever Casey Twomey, and both runners advanced on stolen bases.

Twomey struck out the next two batters before Scott Stearns dribbled a grounder down the first base line that scored Adams. Biddeford second baseman Kerry Crepeau went home with the throw, trying to gun down Wicklund for the final out. When the dust settled, Wicklund was called out at home ”“ much to the dismay of the Massabesic dugout ”“ securing the victory for the Tigers.

“They showed a little heart, they didn’t give up,” Massabesic head coach Jeff Cessario said of his team rallying late in the game. “We got a close play at home there, and it could be tied up, anything could happen.

“Their pitcher did very well. He did a good job keeping us off balance earlier in the game. So it was just a little too late.”

Biddeford was able to knock out seven hits against Adams on the mound, but had trouble stringing them together. The first two batters of the game singled off the right-hander, but a successful pick-off and a double play ended the rally.

A lead-off double by Huot in the top of the second led to the game’s first run, as Huot advanced to third on a groundout and scored on another grounder.

Biddeford had base runners in every inning, but wasn’t able to plate another run until the fifth, when Casey Champagne hit a one-out double and scored two batters later on a single by Corey Creeger.

“That second insurance run by Creeger was huge, obviously, for the game,” said Biddeford head coach Keith Leblanc.

Massabesic struggled on offense for the first six innings. The Mustangs put two runners on in the bottom of the first on a wild pitch strike three and a walk, but a double play brought the inning to an end.

“We didn’t come up with that big hit early in the game,” said Cessario.

Huot gave up his first hit with two outs in the third, but set down the next 10 batters.

“Early in the season, you just hope a guy can get you through five or six innings, and he was able to get us through six,” Leblanc said of Huot. “I thought he did a great job of mixing up his pitches, locating and just keeping them off balance.”

Biddeford had a chance to add another insurance run in the seventh after Creeger doubled with two outs and advanced to third on a bad throw from the outfield, but Crepeau flied out to end the inning.

That set the stage for a wild bottom of the seventh, as the outcome was very much undecided.

“I felt like two runs ”¦ it didn’t feel like enough. Massabesic is always a good team. They grind it out and make you work the whole game,” said Leblanc. “And that’s what they did. They hang around, and we were able to get it done at the end, but it wasn’t easy.”

For Massabesic, it was a tough pill to swallow, as the Mustangs started the season the same way many of their games last year ended: with a one-run loss.

“Another one-run game. This is like the 10th one-run game we’ve lost in the last year,” said Cessario. “We’ve got to score more than one run, you’ve got to get more than three hits in a game.”

— Staff Writer Wil Kramlich can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 323 or sports@journaltribune.com. Follow him on Twitter @WilTalkSports.