Ellsworth baseball outduels Bucksport with 7th inning comeback

Ellsworth and Bucksport played a nailbiter of a season opener on Wednesday afternoon, with the Eagles scoring their only two runs in the top of the seventh to beat the Bucks 2-1.

On the mound at his home field, Bucksport senior ace Gavin Holyoke escaped jams in the fourth and sixth innings, before the Eagles finally got to sophomore closer Trent Goss, grinding out two walks and three hit batsmen to score two.

Ellsworth’s pitching staff was equally as impressive, with sophomore starter Dawson Curtis striking out ten batters in four innings of work, and senior Miles Palmer closing out the game with three shutout innings and six strikeouts.

“We’ve got some great pitching, and we’ve got some competitors that are hard to beat,” Ellsworth head coach Dan Curtis said. “We got a great performance from Dawson, and Miles did what you’d expect out of a senior — he came in and locked it down.”

Palmer was the first Eagle to cross the plate in the top of the seventh, and also singled on a line drive to right field in the first at-bat of the game. Meanwhile, Curtis finished with two walks, and Ellsworth junior second baseman Hunter Boles was the game’s leading hitter with two singles.

Ellsworth — Class B state champions in 2022 and regional finalists in 2023 — finished with six singles, three walks and no errors on Wednesday.

Bucksport — Class C state champions in 2022 and state finalists in 2023 — finished with four singles, three walks and one error.

“To come out here and beat this team is a good way to start the season,” Palmer said. “It was a gritty game, and it was great to get outside and play. We didn’t hit well with runners in scoring position, but we’re working out the kinks.”

The Golden Bucks also struggled with runners in scoring position, getting two men on in the first and second innings, and loading the bases in the bottom of the third.

Bucksport finally broke through in the third inning when sophomore second baseman Ryan Winchester (one hit, one walk, one run) scored on a passed ball, but the Bucks proceeded to strikeout and groundout to end the inning.

“It’s the first game of the year, but when you compete with a team like Ellsworth they’re going to be ready to go at all times,” Bucksport head coach Josh Jackson said. “It was a fun battle, and it came down to the little things. To start with great competition is always good.”