The Blazes jumped on top 3-0 in the third at Windham on Thursday, but the Eagles took their next opportunity to tie things up, then inched ahead in the fifth on an Ethan Petty blast into right that scored Tanner Laberge. Windham added two more in the sixth, and eventually claimed a 6-3 victory.

The homefield win moved Windham to 7-7 on the year. They followed it up two days later with a 7-1 loss to no. 12 Sanford (6-9). Westbrook moved to 7-7 as well – but they took their next game, 5-2 at no. 6 Portland (9-6).

The Eagles now float in A West’s 11th-place slot; they advanced to 10th on defeating Westbrook – who themselves slid into 11th – but the teams’ subsequent performances jostled the Heal Points just so, reversing their standings. Happily for both, the top 12 squads make playoffs.

Windham head coach Brody Artes expected a dogfight going into Thursday’s bout. “Westbrook-Windham is definitely a rivalry going back several years,” he said.

Westbrook showed a substantially differently lineup. “Because we were hitting about .150,” head coach Greg Souza said. “We’ve got a lot of guys playing out of position.”

Keigan Sears, for instance, played first, and Kyle Heath – a superb catcher – played short.

“[Sears] is a real good player,” Souza said; “he just hasn’t played much there.” Souza additionally described the odd change in glove position Heath was adjusting to on-the-fly.

The Blazes’ Corey Walker kicked of the meat of the action Thursday, when he knocked a hard grounder to short. The throw to first came a moment too late, and Walker landed safe. Josh Richards then stepped in to run for Walker, and Kaleb Kent stepped into the batter’s box.

Kent grounded too, this ball into right; Richards scored for 1-0, while Kent held up at first. Jack McCullough followed Kent to the plate, and clubbed yet another grounder, to the Eagles’ diving shortstop. McCullough beat the throw to gain first, then looked on while Heath took four balls.

Andrew St. Clair next popped a short grounder; the Windham infield opted for the play at home, and successfully saved the run Kent would’ve scored, but found themselves helpless when Austin Blake drove into right, scoring both McCullough and Heath.

Sears grounded out 6-3, allowing Windham to escape the inning and giving them their chance to claw back. They did so promptly: Zach Conley dropped a drive into left and got first, then stole second during Andrew Whiting’s at-bat. For his part, Whiting reached for a curveball, just got hold of it, and outpaced the throw.

Laberge hurtled a shot to right, and would’ve gotten caught at first – in fact, the umpire ruled him out – but baseman Sears couldn’t quite hold on to the ball. It plopped in the dirt, the ump waived off his call, and Laberge took the bag. In the dust-up, Conley scored easily, 3-1.

Zach Alpern then flew out to center – Whiting nevertheless had time to score from second for 3-2 – and Spencer Hodge doubled into right, bringing home Laberge and tying the score.

“A couple mistakes,” Souza said, summing up a succession of small things that went wrong for his squad, “fielding mistakes. Then we had the guy picked at first, dropped the ball – should’ve been the third out, and they scored a couple runs after that.”

“They got the big hits, we didn’t,” he added.

The Blazes couldn’t reignite their third-inning fire, going one, two, three in both the fourth and the fifth; the Eagles, however, were not done soaring. In his team’s fifth, Laberge beat a 6-3 throw to get first, stole second on Alpern’s at-bat, and scored when Petty launched his drive into right. Windham took a 4-3 lead.

“We had some great pitching today,” Artes said of his thrower, Spencer Hodge, “and some great defense as well.”

Later in the fifth, Whiting delicately placed the bunt half of a suicide squeeze just fair down the first-base line. In fielding the ball, Westbrook pitcher Blake Fillmore hit the dirt, appearing from most perspectives to commit obstruction. Whiting instead got called out for interference – and Spencer Hodge, who would’ve scored, got sent back to third.

Luckily, the controversial call didn’t prove a game-changer. The Eagles added two more in the sixth to clinch the W, 6-3. Hodge gets the win on the mound, and Fillmore takes the loss.

“We’ve been a little bit up and down this year,” Artes said. “One game we can go out and play as well as we did today, and the next we can go out and lay an egg. We’ve gotta just get consistent.”

Windham traveled to no. 9 Thornton (7-7-1) on Tuesday – after Current’s print deadlines – for a 4 p.m. showdown, their last of the regular season. Likewise, Westbrook hosted Deering on the same day, at the same time.

Westbrook starter Blake Fillmore fires a pitch toward home in the early going at Windham on Thursday.Westbrook’s Josh Richards slips past Windham catcher Zach Alpern for Thursday afternoon’s first run. The Eagles eventually overtook the Blazes, winning 6-3.Eagle Tanner Laberge soaks in high-fives and pats on the back after crossing home to tie the score with Westbrook Thursday.Windham’s Tyler Johnson reaches base after his bunt skittered between the mound and first – a difficult spot to field.Windham starter Spencer Hodge faces off with a Blazes batter.Blazes third baseman Austin Blake reaches to grab an infield fly at Windham Thursday.Windham’s Zach Conley crosses home – and Tanner Laberge rounds third – in the bottom sixth against Westbrook Thursday. Ethan Petty belted the two-RBI shot to right.Westbrook’s Corey Walker takes a cut at the ball in the Blazes’ 6-3 loss at Windham Thursday.