The Westford baseball team has won 17 straight games. The catalyst for success is in the details. - The Boston Globe (2024)

“It’s been super electric,” senior captain Jake Cullen said. “Last year, we really weren’t scoring too many runs. So, we knew that was going to be a factor this year, to be able to do that. We know that’s the expectation every game.”

As Cullen credits the hitting, Parent makes note of the pitching and defense first. Senior captain Nic Bonica emphasizes the energy and passion they bring. Every facet of the game is clicking for the Ghosts.

“We stay on top of things,” Bonica said. “We do the things we need to, but we don’t overthink it.”

Back in the city, English High picked up where it left off a year ago. Like Westford, an unbeaten season was cut short in the tournament, losing to Seekonk in extra innings in the Division 4 semifinals. But coach Christian Ortiz challenged his group, now in Division 5, with a difficult schedule. It’s paid dividends: the Blue & Blue are 17-2, and both losses came against Division 1 teams.

“They’re just hungry to do it again, to make it as far as they can but further than last year,” Ortiz said of his team, which graduated just four players from a year ago. “They came back this season, head down, straight to work. The end goal is to win a state title and that’s what they’re trying to do.”

Led by senior David Castillo, a talented shortstop with plenty of power at the plate, and junior Armanis Romero, who is on the cusp of reaching 30 hits, RBIs, runs, and steals this year, the Blue & Blue enter this week’s City League tournament unbeaten in the league through the regular season.

English has won seven straight dating back to a 10-8 loss to Lincoln-Sudbury, a team ranked 11th in the MIAA’s Division 1 power rankings. The success is all in the details.

“That’s probably one of the best teams I’ve coached against in my years in high school,” Ortiz said. “We really wanted that one, but the boys played super well. The attention to detail has improved a lot. Fewer baserunning mistakes, pitchers attacking and making sure they get that first out each inning.”

In the Tri-Valley League, Hopkinton needed to win 15 straight games to win the league outright with Westwood on its tails. So, naturally, the Hillers won 15 straight, capping it with a walkoff win over Medfield Wednesday to win the league.

After a 1-3 start, it was all about trusting the process for coach Matt Anderson and his team, which sports 11 seniors.

“It would not have been easy to buy in after the first four games,” Anderson said. “We have leaders that aren’t just going to do what [the coaches] tell them, but they’re going to get other guys to do it too.”

Senior captain Derek Hatherly and his 0.65 ERA has paced the Hillers on the mound, and fellow captains Pete Mahon, Charlie Petruney, and Sean McCann worked to right the ship. The win streak includes four one-run wins in the last seven, but it shows that the success lies in what they can control.

“We’re calm and we’re confident when any situation comes up,” Anderson said. “It’s the fact that we’ve come through in those clutch moments: we’ve been there before, we know what’s going to happen, and it’s beautiful.”

Extra Bases

▪ The final regular season games are on Monday and the MIAA state tournament brackets will be released Wednesday. In the latest power rankings, the top seeds in each division were: BC High (D1), Walpole (D2), Oakmont (D3), Lynnfield (D4), and Georgetown (D5) . . . Because this is the final week of the regular season, several league champions were crowned. Despite winning the last two Division 1 state titles, Taunton clinched its first outright Hockomock League Kelley-Rex title since 2013 with Friday’s 6-1 win over North Attleboro . . . Hopkinton, winners of 15 straight, captured the Tri-Valley League Large after Wednesday’s victory over Medfield . . . Peabody won the Northeastern Conference South and Masco the NEC North . . . Barnstable claimed the Cape & Islands Atlantic Division with Friday’s 6-3 win over Nauset . . . Braintree and Walpole shared the Bay State Conference’s Herget Division after Braintree beat Milton and Walpole lost at Needham on Wednesday. The league powers split their two matchups in the regular season.

▪ Ranked No. 7 in the D1 power rankings, Leominster captured a second straight CMADA Class A Tournament title Wednesday with an 8-4 win over Wachusett at Tivnan Field in Worcester. The Blue Devils, who reached the 2021 D1 final under the previous state tournament format, will be a serious threat from Central Mass . . . O’Bryant junior Matthew Griffin recorded his 100th strikeout of the season Wednesday in a 16-strikeout performance . . . Braintree finished 17-3, the second most regular season wins in program history . . . The City League champion will be crowned Saturday at 11 a.m. at Boston College’s Harrington Athletic Complex. The semifinal matchups are on Thursday between English High/Boston International and Latin Academy/Charlestown. English is looking to repeat . . . It will be a tense Memorial Day weekend for teams on the tournament bubble. The Top 32 teams in each division plus teams with a .500 record or better automatically qualify. Take Framingham for instance. The Flyers lost Wednesday at Brookline to finish 9-11. They were No. 29 in Tuesday’s updated power rankings.

Games to watch

Friday, No. 11 Hopkinton vs. No. 10 Lincoln-Sudbury, 4 p.m. — A great matchup between two surging teams in the semifinals of the Pedroli Tournament at Natick High. Franklin and Natick play in the other semifinal at 7 p.m., and the championship is Saturday.

Friday, No. 20 Central Catholic at No. 2 BC High, 6:30 p.m. — With ace Josh Florence likely on the mound, the Raiders seek a signature win to close the season while the Eagles try to bounce back from Wednesday’s loss to Chelmsford.

Saturday, City League Championship, 11 a.m. — English High, which hasn’t dropped a City League game in two years, looks to claim a second straight league title at Boston College’s Harrington Athletic Complex.

Saturday, James Geanoulis and Gary Linehan Memorial Day Tournament, 4 p.m. — Two great semifinal matchups are on tap at Peabody High as the Tanners (16-2) play Wakefield (15-3), and Andover (11-7) tangles with Danvers. The winners play Sunday for the title.

Correspondent Matt Doherty contributed to this story.