Elks blank Mooers

    Last Thursday, the Houlton Little League Minors championship game was closer than the score indicates, as the Houlton Elks defeated Mooers Realty, 5-0.
    The Houlton Elks were led from the mound by Jason Collett, who racked up 10 strikeouts and was only one out away from throwing a complete game when he maxed out his pitching count. John Thatcher came in to record the final out on a strikeout.
    Collett was aided by a strong catching performance by Keegan Gentle, who threw out one runner stealing and didn’t allow anyone to steal home. In the field, the Houlton Elks saw several defensive stops by Collett, Sam Drew and Duncan McCormick, who played a strong first base. 
    The Houlton Elks broke onto the scoreboard in the third when Maggie Cowperthwaite came home and Mooers Realty misplayed the ball at the plate. Cowperthwaite’s steal was the eventual game-winning run.
    In the fourth, Gentle added a run by stealing home, followed by Logan Tribou, who was knocked in by Thatcher. McCormick then knocked in Thatcher. In the fifth, Cowperthwaite added an insurance run.   
    Also playing for the champion Houlton Elks were Ryder Graham, Joel Carmichael, Elijah Matheson, Michael Beaton and Josh Miller. The team is coached by Trapper Gentle, Ben Drew and Peter Collett.
    Noah Gould was on the disabled list.
    For the runner-up Mooers Realty club, Kyle Carver pitched two scoreless innings before giving up the first run in the third. Noah Reynolds came in to relieve Carver in the fourth and put in 2 2/3 innings of strong relief. 
    Cameron Callnan was a brick wall as a catcher with two assists and a put out of a runner stealing home.  Alex Wilde played a stingy first base with five unassisted put outs. 
    Also playing for Mooers Realty were Kurtis Reynolds, Jeron Gentle, Tyler MacDonald, Aidan Connors, Damon Reynolds, Derek Brown, Grace Jipson and Aryus Desjardins. The team is coached by Travis Gentle, Brian Donnelly and Brian Reynolds.
    “It was an exciting game with very few errors for a Minors game,” said Peter Collett, one of the coaches for the Houlton Elks. “It  was a pitchers’ duel that featured great defense by both teams.”