Category Archives: Rowley

August 11, 2013 · 9:29 pm

Rowley evens ITL finals with 6-5 win over Manchester-Essex

Drew Carter crosses home with the eventual game-winner in the sixth inning

Rams coach Jeff Wood congratulates closer Joe Martin after the final out

(Rowley) The Rowley Rams evened their Intertown Twilight League final series with Manchester-Essex, 6-5, on a sunny Sunday afternoon at Eiras Field.

The ME Mariners won the opener of the championship series in Essex, 3-2, thanks to a seventh-inning walkoff run on Saturday afternoon. Caulin Rogers’ single drove across the game winner.

In Game 2, the Mariners battled back from a three-run deficit and went up 5-4 in the fifth inning. But the #2 seed Rams tied the score in the bottom of the 5th and tallied the unearned game-winner in the sixth.

The best-of-five series resumes on Wednesday evening in Essex.

Third baseman Alex Ray chases a deflected ball as Drew Carter approaches third base.

No one person ever loses a team game. However, I’m not sure Mariners third baseman Alex Ray was buying that after his two-out boot enabled the Rams to push across their sixth run. CJ Ingraham’s grounder to Alex deflected off his glove and down the third baseline. Rowley’s Drew Carter, who had singled to lead off the inning and moved to second on Marco Luisi’s fielder’s choice, was on the move with two outs. If Alex cleanly fielded the grounder he had an easy, final-out, force out at third but the error occurred and Drew’s hustle allowed him to beat the throw home with the eventual game winner.

Joe White went the first four innings for Rowley. Adam Newell (winning pitcher) covered the fifth and sixth while Joe Martin earned the save with a hitless seventh.

Nate Bertolino slides in with the fifth ME run

Anyone at Eiras Field will tell you that the seventh had its moment of drama as Mariners’ second batter Brett Cahill hit a long out to right that was close to home-run distance. In an earlier at-bat the ME catcher had doubled off the rightfield fence. There was a bit of an incoming breeze in the seventh inning and instead of tying the game, a putout was recorded by Rams rightfielder Justin Bolla.

Manchester-Essex scored first (in the first) as Rory Gentile led off with a double to the leftfield corner, stole third, and came home on Caulin Rogers sacrifice fly.

The Rams (15-6-2 during the regular season) put up four runs in the second inning. Rowley turned a first-and-third situation into an unearned run. Catcher Brett Cahill’s throw to second (trying to get Cam D’Agostino) was low and Justin Bolla scored from third. An RBI double by Drew Carter and RBI singles by Mike White and CJ Ingraham delivered the other three runs for the home team.

ME (19-4-1 during the regular season) erased the 4-1 deficit in the fourth inning. Adrian Frattini doubled in two runs before an error by Rowley third baseman Koby Thibault (he threw wild to home) produced the tying run.

The Mariners (defending ITL champs) went in front in the fifth. Nate Bertolino reached third after a walk, steal, and fielder’s choice and scored on Mike Cain’s fly-out to center.

Down a run (5-4) in the fifth, it was Rowley’s turn to rally. A couple of two-strike hits (CJ Ingraham and Dmitri Hunt) did the damage. CJ led off with a single and stole second before Dmitri’s RBI single.

Cam DAgostino

If Brett Cahill’s fly to right in the 7th was the longest out, Cam D’Agostino’s rope to center in the Rowley fifth was the hardest hit for an out in the game. Cam’s laser to center was right at CF Rory Gentile and he made the catch for the final out.

In the sixth, Rowley got the unearned game-winner and the series now becomes best two-out-of-three.

Ryan Marques went 5 2/3 innings allowing four earned runs for Manchester-Essex. Adam Philpott recorded the final out in the sixth inning.

Ian Buckley and Adrian Frattini paced ME with two hits apiece. CJ Ingraham, Cam D’Agostino, and Drew Carter did the same for Rowley.

Rowley had runners on second and third in the fourth inning but Ryan Marques retired Mike White, Nick Liguori, and Joe Esposito to escape damage.

The Mariners stole five bases while Rowley stole two.

The biggest outburst against an umpire was in the ME sixth when a very close play at first ended the inning without the runner from third scoring.

Drew Carter – 2 runs, 2 hits, 1 rbi

The last time I saw Drew Carter play (June 18, 2011) was at Fraser Field in Lynn at the D3 state title game that Newburyport won over Pioneer Valley. Drew made a huge defensive play at third in that one.

The last time I saw Rowley play was at Eiras Field two years ago when they defeated Rockport, 5-2, to win their first (?) ITL title.

The last time I saw Adrian Frattini he pitched Manchester-Essex past Newburyport to end the Clippers 18-game winning streak early in the 2012 season.

Rowley boxscore

Manchester-Essex boxscore

(All of the pictures above and below enlarge considerably if you click on them.)

CJ Ingraham steals second

CJ Ingraham heads home as centerfielder Rory Gentile prepares to throw

Dmitri Hunt reaches third

ME starter Ryan Marques

Caulin Rogers begins slide to third

low throw to second

Nick Liquori

Rory Gentile

trouble at second

Ian Buckley beats pitcher Joe White to first

Alex Ray makes a nice play

Ian Buckley steals

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Filed under Manchester-Essex, Rowley

Tagged as Adam Newell, Alex Ray, Brett Cahill, Cam D'Agostino, Caulin Rogers, CJ Ingraham, Dmitri Hunt, Drew Carter, Ian Buckley, Joe Martin, Joe White, Nate Bertolino, Ryan Marques

August 17, 2011 · 11:05 pm

Rowley sweeps Rockport with 5-1 win to get 2011 ITL Title

Pitcher Mike Sloban (hands raised) starts celebrating after the Rowley Rams won the ITL title on Wednesday night at Eiras Field.

Anthony Conte sets to throw to first after taking flip from shortstop Jordan Silva and turns game-ending double play. Brock Currier (3 hits) is #99.

(Rowley) Records are elusive in the Intertown Twilight League and no one appeared sure of when the last Rowley ITL championship was. However, there is certainty that the Rams are the 2011 ITL champs.

The #1 seed Rams (18-5-2) completed a 3-game sweep of the #2 seed Rockport Townies (14-10) on gorgeous Wednesday night, 5-2, at Eiras Field in Rowley.

The only moisture I noticed on this night was dripping off Ram manager Jeff Wood afterwards as he and the contents of a fluid container connected just as he was underway with his team with post-game congratulations.

Pitcher Mike Sloban afterwards

There was plenty to like about the way Rowley played in the championship game. They got a complete game seven hitter from righty Mike Sloban. They were flawless in the field turning 6-4-3 double plays in the sixth and seventh. They took advantage of Rockport lapses in the field for three of their five runs.

Mike Sloban (Pentucket & UMassLowell) escaped two, one-out, first-and-third jams getting two of his four strikeouts in those situations.

The Rams made all the plays in the field. The short (Jordan Silva) to second (Anthony Conte) to first (Dave Smith) double plays in the 6th and 7th kept the Townies away from any ideas of late-game heroics.

Rockport opened the scoring in the second as Chuck Anderson’s infield hit scored Mike Emerson, who had doubled and gone to third on a fielder’s choice to give Rockport an early 1-0 lead.

Marco Luisi excapes Brent Currier’s rundown tag in the second inning and later scored Rowley’s second run.

Rowley took the lead for good (2-1) in the bottom of the second. Rockport messed up a rundown play between home and third and instead of being an out Marco Luisi would later tally the Rams second run. Three walks by Rockport starter Brett Smith contributed to the Ram opportunities in this inning. Anthony Conte got credit for an RBI when he walked. Andrew Fecteau brought in the other run with a sacrifice fly.

In the third, Ralph Renzulli reached on shortstop Derek Osmond’s throwing error and later scored Rowley’s third run on Marco Luisi’s single to right. Also in the third, Townie starter Brett Smith had trouble with a blister and Derek Osmond relieved him.

In the fourth Rockport got a run back. Dan Greel doubled to right and reached third on a sacrifice fly by Mike Emerson. Connor Ressel’s single through the drawn in Ram infield produced the score.

Anthony Conte heads past manager/third base coach Jeff Wood to home in the 4th inning.

With the lead cut to 3-2, Anthony Conte took second in the bottom of the 4th inning after Kurt Koerth’s bobble in right field of his single. Kyle McElroy reached the base of the left field fence and Anthony was home with Rowley’s fourth run.

Mike Sloban shut down the Townies the rest of the way. He pitched out of a first-and-third jam in the fourth and had double plays behind him in the 6th and 7th.

Rowley added their fifth and final run in the fifth inning. Andrew Fecteau ripped a two-strike single to center and two Derek Osmond wild pitches later was on third. Jordan Silva’s liner to center dropped off Tom Robertson’s glove and Andrew scored.

The Rams had to defeat the perennial iron (Manchester-Essex & Rockport) of the ITL to win the title. You had to go back to 2000 to find a team (Ipswich) other than those two to win the league.

Nick Curcuru in the Gloucester Times wrote a couple of days ago that the last Rowley title was in 1979. No matter, no one at this game seemed to remember it. It probably felt like 1929 (ITL’s founding year) to the Rowley fans! Manager Jeff Wood related that the Rams didn’t win a single game five years ago and he related that information like someone who had been there.

Jordan Silva, Mike Sloban, and Dave Smith are all on the UMassLowell baseball roster.

Last time I saw Marco Luisi he was hitting two homers against Newburyport in 2009 in the North title game for Georgetown.

The last time I saw Anthony Conte he was playing soccer for Georgetown against Hamilton-Wenham in the North finals.

Brock Currier led Rockport with three hits. Teammate Chuck Anderson had two hits.

Dave Smith (Amesbury) paced Rowley with two hits. Anthony Conte, Marco Luisi, and Andrew Fecteau each had a hit, an RBI, and scored a run.

Brett Smith blister problem

Dave Smith scores first run for Rowley

Jordan Silva slides into second

Rowley manager Jeff Wood

Mike Emerson scores first Rockport run

Rams celebrate

(I keep my own stats and take my own pictures. Mistakes are unintended. Use of any of the pictures elsewhere is fine with me as long as credit is given. All of the pictures in this post will enlarge if you click on them. Enjoy!)

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Filed under Rockport, Rowley

Tagged as Andrew Fecteau, Anthony Conte, Brett Smith, Brock Currier, Chuck Anderson, Connor Ressel, Dan Greel, Dave Smith, Derek Osmond, Intertown Twilight League, Jeff Wood, Jordan Silva, Kyle McElroy, Marco Luisi, Mike Emerson, Mike Sloban, Ralph Renzulli, Rockport Townies, Rowley Rams, Tom Robertson

July 29, 2009 · 1:45 pm

Eddie MacDonald of Rowley Wins TD Banknorth 250

Eddie MacDonald with checkered flag in victory lane

(Oxford ME) Well, at least part of his wish came true.

Before the qualifying races at Oxford Plains Speedway for the TD Banknorth 250 on Sunday afternoon (July 19th), Eddie MacDonald of Rowley told me, “It would be neat to have the two of us over there in victory lane when the day ends.”

Eddie (29) was referring to fellow racer Mike Johnson (42) from Salisbury.

But it wasn’t meant to be, as Mike had as much bad luck as Eddie had good luck.

Mike ended the day not qualifying for the TD Banknorth 250 despite three tries. “We had a bad transmission and could only get one practice in,” he said. Mike’s best chance was in his first qualifying attempt when he started in the pole position.

On the other hand, Eddie practiced, qualified and later ended up on victory lane as the winner of arguably the most important annual sporting event in Maine.

Eddie described the victory as, “the biggest win I’ve ever had.” He collected $25,000 for first place plus an additional $10,300 for keeping #17 in the lead for 103 laps.

During the race, the Triton graduate held the lead when he went in for a pit stop on Lap 129. He returned to action and thirty-eight laps later he had made up the time lost and was back in front and never trailed the rest of the way. A year ago, Eddie made a similar pit stop and got new tires only to find the car going slower after the tire change and had to settle for a frustrating 6th place finish.

Eddie was quick to praise his crew afterwards particularly for the work they did during nearly six hours of practice. “I’d come in about every few practice laps for adjustments including tire changes.” The frequent stops were partly for practice for the race itself and partly to make sure the car, and specifically the tires, were right unlike the previous year.

You put a tightly spaced field of 41 race cars on a small track (three eighth of a mile) for 250 laps and the likelihood of situations leading to cautions is great. In this one, there were ten cautions. The last caution, on Lap 212, was the closest Eddie came to being knocked out of the race entirely. Right in front of the crowded grandstand a driver spun around right into Eddie’s path but Eddie was able to swerve and avoid contact and drive on from there to the win when racing resumed.

Eddie laughed when he told me that he had “cautions” on his mind as the race wound down. “I figured that there would be a caution at twenty, ten, and even on the last lap. I was praying that the caution flag didn’t come out and luckily it didn’t.”

Mike and Eddie are part of the Camping World East Tour. Ahead for them are scheduled races in New York and Connecticut followed by a September 18th race at nearby (1 ½ hours) Loudon, New Hampshire.
Eddie won twice at Loudon in 2008.

Well-known driver Rusty Wallace was the grand marshal at Oxford while Kenny Wallace and his nephew Steven also took part. The threesome drew plenty of attention from the crowd.

However, when the race was over it was Rowley’s Eddie MacDonald drawing the biggest cheers of the day. He summarized the way things went best when he said, “Everything worked just the way we needed it to.”

( This story appeared in The Town Common on July 29, 2009. )

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Filed under Eddie MacDonald, Oxford Plains Speedway, Rowley, TD Banknorth 250

Tagged as Eddie MacDonald, Loudon, Mike Johnson, New Hampshire Speedway, Oxford Plains Speedway, Rollie LaChance, Rowley, Salisbury, TD Banknorth 250

July 19, 2009 · 10:47 pm

Eddie MacDonald Wins 2009 TD Banknorth 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway

Eddie MacDonald with checkered flag in hand and trophy behind him.

( Click on the underlined words for pictures. )

(Oxford – Maine) I was at the TD Banknorth 250 held at the Oxford Plains Speedway this evening and saw Eddie MacDonald of Rowley (MA) win the event.

Earlier this week I took an interest in this race because I thought that someone from Rowley had been in it last year. On the Oxford Plains website, I learned that there were actually two drivers (Mike Johnson and Eddie MacDonald) from the readership towns of The Town Common.

Divinely, The Town Common wanted the story and the media department of OPS put me on the media list.

I talked to both drivers before they did any racing. I was taken by how soft-spoken and polite Eddie was. He had a crew that was busy with a lot of high-tech equipment. Mike was also easy to talk with. He had a crew of one working on his car.

Eddie ran in the third qualifying race. I got confused, unaware that there were two #17’s in the race, and thought he had not qualified. Turns out, he had started in sixth and gone on to win the heat and qualify.

Mike was in the fourth qualifying race in the pole position. His very long day started early. He quickly lost the lead and before long spun out. A second try in the consolation round resulted in another spinout. A third try in the Last Chance round had him starting at the back and staying there. At least there was no damage to his car. His difficulties had almost everything to do with a bad transmission that allowed him very little practice.

Eddie, on the other hand, put in hours of practice time and his car was ready. Winning the third heat, got Eddie placed on the inside in the second row for the TD Banknorth 250.

I had been on the pit side of the track for all the qualifying races. I opted for the other side and the press box for the big race. Good choice because the pits were transferred to the infield closer to the grandstand. The press box was enclosed so the roar of the engines was lessened. The view was terrific and there was food to be had. Yes, very good choice!

They had the parade of the cars and all the drivers including Eddie were introduced. After the national anthems, a howitzer was fired off that put a scare into most of the folks in the grandstand.

Eddie got the lead for the first time in Lap 5 and was in the top five until he pitted on Lap 129. That pitting was crucial because a year ago he had pitted while in the lead and had come back with a car that didn’t run as well. He ended up a disappointing sixth.

When he came back this time, I couldn’t figure out what place he was actually in. On a caution a few laps later, he was 15th in row but some of those cars were a lap behind. On Lap 147, he was listed fifth. Twenty laps later, he was in first. He never gave the lead back.

There was one narrow escape when a car spun out right in front of him in front of the grandstand. He dodged by it and then just took off on the restart.

From my position in the press box, I was a little tardy getting down onto the track afterwards. I missed a picture of Eddie getting out of his car and standing on the roof.

There was a replica of the check that Eddie will receive for the win ($25,000) and the lead laps ($10,300).

I got a picture of Eddie with his crew chief (Rollie LaChance) and with his father (Red).

It was quite the adventure and I thank God for it.

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Filed under Eddie MacDonald, Oxford Plains Speedway, Rowley, TD Banknorth 250

Tagged as Eddie MacDonald, Oxford Plains Speedway, Rowley, TD Banknorth 250

May 15, 2009 · 11:52 am

A Garden Club Blooms in Rowley

The baton is passed, or is it the rake and shovel?

There is now an active garden club headquartered in Rowley – The Great Marsh Garden Club.

“The Rowley Garden Club hadn’t been active for years,” explained active gardener and one of the club’s leaders, Jill Sczepanski, to me in an interview near the Rowley Cemetery. What could be done?

In August of 2007, Jill met with several other interested gardeners and decided to organize a garden club. “We had talked about doing it for several years,” she recalled.

And organize they did. “The five of us became the Board of Directors,” she recalled. “We created structure so that our garden club would last.”

The group chose, “Great Marsh,” for their club name because they didn’t want interested gardeners to think that membership was limited to Rowley residents.

Several in the original group had garden club experience. Based on that experience an early decision they agreed on was to become part of the Garden Club Federation of Massachusetts, as opposed to being loosely organized.

“Once you have been organized for a year you can become a member of that federation and that’s what we’ve done,” said Jill. “They are very helpful. They sent someone to give us ideas on the best ways to undertake civic projects and work with public officials.”

Star Memorial Garden in the making at Rowley Cemetery.

Currently underway is the club’s first civic project – restoring the Star Memorial Garden in the Rowley Cemetery. This garden honors those who have served our country. Several club members have already prepared the soil and reshaped the star outline. “We will be adding annuals of red, white, and blue that will be in place when the Memorial Day parade ends in the cemetery later this month,” she promised.

Jill said that she hoped that future fundraising would enable the club to, “carve out the area outside the star into a patio where four granite tree benches can be placed so that people can come and sit.”

The club meets on the first Tuesday of the month at 6:30PM from September-June in the Rowley Library.

The original five organizers have grown quickly to thirty-five members in less than two years. “We are pleased to have five men among the membership,” said Jill. “Most clubs don’t have any men.”

There are no restrictions on those wishing to join. “We already have within the club a variety of gardening backgrounds,” she explained. “Our goals are to learn more about gardening and do community service.”

Jill can be contacted at 978-948-7800 or at gmgardenclub@mac.com for more information about the club, including the details for becoming a member.

An important part of the Great Marsh Garden Club is raising money. “You can’t do civic projects without it,” added Jill.

On April 7th, the club hosted a fundraiser featuring radio gardening host Paul Parent. “He was a great draw and people came from as far away as Andover,” Jill reported.

The next fundraiser is scheduled for Saturday (May 23rd) at Market Basket in Rowley. It is the spring plant sale and it will run from 8AM-2PM. “We will have a great selection of perennials for sale that were donated by club members as well as annuals,” said Jill.

Jill assured me that the number of projects they might do are numerous but she added that they need to be selective in the ones they choose. “Starting the projects is the easier part. More difficult is handling the maintenance, especially in the summer when many are on vacation.”

Jill said that the club recognizes the need to align their activities with the wishes of the townspeople of Rowley. “Some residents have told us that they want to get back to the town center as a gathering place. We have some ideas in that direction for the town common.”

Armed with commendable intentions and structure, it is easy to understand why the Great Marsh Garden Club is, and will continue to be, an asset to Rowley. Consider joining.

( This story appeared in The Town Common on May 13, 2009. )

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Filed under Great Marsh Garden Club, Rowley

Tagged as Garden Club Federation of Massachusetts, Great Marsh Garden Club, Jill Sczepanski, Paul Parent, Rowley, Star Memorial Garden