It took until midnight, but Poolesville wins title

The Poolesville Falcons are the Class 3A Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association state champions. Their 4-3 win over the Chesapeake-AA Cougars on Saturday night – actually, early Sunday morning — marks the program’s first title in school history.

“Those guys [Chesapeake-AA] have been there before, they know what it’s all about,” Poolesville head coach Steve Orsini said. “We’re the rookie on the block. … We played like this all year. It would be close, but we’d get that extra run just to be enough.”

How It Happened

It didn’t take long for Poolesville to score. With bases loaded in the bottom of the first, shortstop Brady Pearre pushed one through the left side, scoring both center fielder Colin Metz and pitcher Cole Carmack.

The Falcons added two more in the fourth as Metz stroked a two-out double.

Chesapeake-AA answered back a half inning later. The Cougars took advantage of two errors and a wild pitch to trail by only one run. Catcher Tommy McNamara had the lone RBI in the fifth.

Top Performance

Relief pitcher Cooper Myers held the lead for the Falcons in his 2 1/3 innings of work. The right-hander retired six of the nine batters he faced. He surrendered two hits and struck out two.

“My brother told me today, ‘If you come in relief, come in with your hair on fire.’ And that’s kind of what I did,” Myers said. “I got into the zone. It was just me and my catcher.”

On being a state champion, the senior said, “I’m speechless. Everyone knew this was the goal at the beginning of the season. … There’s something special about this team.”

Game-changers

Defense, A Man’s Best Friend: Chesapeake-AA had opportunities all night long. The Cougars left nine runners on base in the first four innings. Credit Carmack, a senior, and the seven others behind him.

“My defense really backed me up,” the right-hander said. “My curveball was on, and I kept on working the corner of the plate, not letting them get any pitches to hit.”

Pearre added, “We just battle, battle and battle. It’s the whole team. We play well together as a team, unlike any other I’ve been a part of.”

Making an Early Statement — Late: Poolesville jumped on the Cougars right out of the gate. In their first at-bat, the Falcons drew a walk, hit a double and reached on a dropped third strike. Pearre found a pitch to hit and didn’t miss – giving the Montgomery County school the 2-0 lead.

“With Cole on the mound, those two runs felt like six in that early inning,” Pearre said.

Orsini added, “When we scored two runs in the first, we shocked them. That frustrated their pitcher a little bit and kept at them.”

The teams had to play a waiting game before they could take the field. Scheduled for 7 p.m., the first pitch wasn’t until 10:10 p.m. due to a lengthy rain delay that pushed back the start of the 2A contest.

The Falcons didn’t charge the field and celebrate their 3A title until 12:13 Sunday morning.