By JOE O’GORMAN
jogorman@trentonian.com
HAMILTON – When you are trying to battle your way through the elimination bracket, it’s certainly not about style points.
It’s about finding a way to win.
Western Monmouth and West Windsor-Plainsboro just kept battling and it wasn’t decided until the sixth inning when Western Monmouth plated four runs to take a 17-13 win last night on the Trenton field in the BRL District One 13-year old tournament.
Western Monmouth will return tomorrow at 8:30 p.m. to face Montgomery on the TBRL field in another elimination game.
Ryan Gould with a pair of triples, a double and a single to drive home five runs keyed the WEMO rally in the sixth with his second triple. Matt Coiante had a two-run single in the inning and Mo Stevens drove in a run with a single.
WEMO set the tempo early when it jumped to a 9-2 lead in the top of the fourth and it looked like it was going to live to play another day. Gould slammed his first triple in the inning to lead the offense.
Gould had plenty of help as Trent LeBlanc and Coiante each had three hits for WEMO.
Then West Windsor-Plainsboro sent 17 batters to the plate and it seized control 13-9. WW-P banged out seven hits in the frame with Dan Demouth getting a double to highlight the inning that saw all nine players reach home.
But this was not yet over.
Western Monmouth tied the game in the fifth when it scored four with Gould again getting a two-run double to highlight the frame.
WW-P was led by Dan Demouth with three hits while Jon Nestel and Nate Santa Maria each stroked a pair of hits. Nestel had three RBI.
Each team battled and in the end it was Western Monmouth finding a way to win.