Norwood Baseball Routs Durfee 18-5 in Division 1 South Sectional Quarterfinal-June 5, 1990

Crack! Boom! Bang! While they may not be the New York Yankees, the Norwood HSchool baseball team is currently putting on a display reminiscent of baseball’s legendary “Murderers’ Row.”

Fueled by designated hitter Mike Buckley, who paced a staggering 20-hit offensive onslaught with four extra-base hits and five RBIs, the Mustangs decisively rolled over Durfee 18-5 in a dominant Division 1 South Sectional quarterfinal matchup. With the victory, Norwood advances to face New Bedford in the South semifinals scheduled for Thursday at 4:00 p.m. in Rockland.

Relentless Offense Overwhelms Durfee

Norwood’s bats have been virtually unstoppable, compiling 32 runs and 33 hits—including 19 for extra bases—across consecutive postseason victories over BC High and Durfee.

“This is probably the best hitting team I’ve had,” said veteran coach Pete Wall, who has helmed the Mustang program for the past 22 seasons. “I just hope our hot hitting continues in the big ones.”

Opposing coach Ray Medeiros was equally awe-struck by the barrage: “They are positively, without a doubt, the best hitting club I’ve ever seen. I’m amazed. We don’t have nine kids who can hit the ball like that. There were no ground ball hits, just fly balls to the gaps.”

The Mustangs jumped on Durfee starting pitcher Ed Avilla immediately, plating four runs in the bottom of the first inning. Todd Newman (4-for-6, three RBIs) doubled, followed by a thunderous two-run home run to left-center by John Crimmins. After a Jeff Putnam double, Buckley smashed a two-run homer to right-center.

After Durfee clawed back to within two runs at 6-4 by the fifth inning, Norwood pulled away permanently. A two-run double by Steve Clougherty in the sixth pushed the lead to 9-4. The Mustangs then treated the home crowd to a batting practice clinic in the seventh inning, erupting for seven runs highlighted by a two-run double from Newman, a two-run single from Putnam, and a two-run triple by Buckley. Clougherty added another RBI triple in the eighth to cap the 18-5 rout.

Box Score and Game Stats

• Score By Innings:
  • Durfee: 0-1-0 / 1-2-0 / 1-0-0 — 5 Runs, 13 Hits, 0 Errors
  • Norwood: 4-0-2 / 0-0-3 / 7-2-x — 18 Runs, 20 Hits, 0 Errors
• Pitching Decision: Winning Pitcher — Evens (Norwood); Losing Pitcher — Avilla (Durfee).
• Key Extra-Base Hits:
  • Doubles: Newman (2), Putnam, Mahoney, Kupiac, Clougherty, Buckley.
  • Triples: Buckley (2), Putnam, Clougherty.
  • Home Runs: Crimmins, Buckley, Plante.
• RBI Leaders: Buckley (5), Putnam (3), Clougherty (3), Crimmins (2), Mahoney (2), Plante (2), Jacob, Couto, Avilla.

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger