Tom Sydnor wasn’t sure about the type of team he would field this summer.

The Calvert American Legion head coach had lost the bulk of his 2007 starters, returning only a few scattered seniors and college freshmen among a mostly inexperienced roster.

“When the season started, my biggest fear was if we’d win any games,� recalled Sydnor. “If you had told me we’d be .500, I would have been ecstatic.�

Following a 4-3 win over Mayo Post 226 Wednesday, July 16 at Hallowing Point Park, Sydnor is perfectly content with his own underassessment.

Calvert Posts 85, 206, 220 and 274 moved to 14-9 after the victory, five games over their head coach’s projections. The team had even challenged for a league title midway through the season, before a two-week losing skid ended those aspirations.

To halt that run of defeats, Calvert received an assist from one of their elder players against Mayo. Matt Beck, a 2008 Huntingtown graduate, found time off in his 22-and-under collegiate league schedule to make the start on the mound for Calvert.

“Matt could have played for us this year, but he’s on other leagues and didn’t have the time,� noted Sydnor. “He’s played with all these kids and fits right in.�

“I just came in to help,� Beck said. “I like to do it whenever I can; just keep the [Huntingtown] crew together.�

Beck tossed five innings of two-run ball, his only real miscue coming in the top of the fourth. A dropped pop fly and misplayed grounder put runners on first and second, both of whom eventually scored off a two-out single to centerfield.

Giving up those runs seemed to rile Beck’s emotions, a trait he hopes to wane during his transition to the collegiate level.

“I need to learn how to control that, I really do,� admitted Beck, who ended with six strikeouts. “Especially if I try to pitch at Salisbury [University]. It’ll have to be turned down a notch.�

Despite solid pitching by Beck and Brian Lusby (who came on in relief to start the sixth inning), Calvert seemed headed for another loss after managing just two hits through five frames.

Heeding Sydnor’s constant instructions to swing with a purpose, not for the fences, Calvert finally asserted their offense in the bottom of the sixth inning.

After Jimmy Lubonski reached first on an infield error, Brian Billet and Beck laced consecutive singles to tie the game. A bases-loaded walk by John McIntosh scored the go-ahead run later in the inning.

“We didn’t hit well tonight,� said Jesse Reid, who scored Calvert’s first run off a third inning triple. “But we found the pitches we needed to for those clutch runs.�

Calvert still had to fend off Mayo’s own comeback effort—one that ended in a peculiar fashion.

Down to their final out and with runners on first and second, Mayo re-tied the game at 3-3 by lifting a Lusby slider into centerfield. Calvert responded in the bottom of the seventh—Eric Gronbeck smoked a leadoff double, then moved 90 feet from victory on Nick Syndor’s groundout.

That sequence set up a bizarre winning play. Trying to set up the double play, Mayo elected to intentionally walk Brett Blevins. However, in doing so Mayo’s catcher mistakenly took both feet outside the catcher’s box—resulting in a balk that scored Blevins from third.

“Unfortunately, it was the right call,� said Sydnor, who would have preferred a more traditional finish. “I’ve never ended a game that way.�

As has been the case all season, Sydnor continues to be surprised. That his Calvert team could enjoy a solid record this summer seems mostly attributed to a group of players whom genuinely enjoy playing together.

“I’m having a great time,� said Beck, who often plays four to five games a week during the summertime. “I love playing baseball; I’ll do it whenever I can.�

“It’s been good,� added Reid, another 2008 Huntingtown graduate. “I’m looking forward to coming back next year and playing again.�

E-mail William Logan at sports@calvertindependent.com.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Total H E

M 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 3 4 3

C 0 0 1 0 0 2 1 4 5 3

Calvert (14-9)

Jesse Reid: 2-for-3, 1 triple, 1 run

Matt Beck: 1-for-3, 1 RBI

John McIntosh: 0-for-2, 1 RBI

Eric Gronbeck: 1-for-1, 1 run

Winning pitcher

Brian Lusby: 2 innings, 2 hits, 1 earned run allowed, 2 strikeouts