History repeats itself as Brewers are eliminated from the NDBL semis by their nemesis Norrie from New Lowell

By Jim Stewart

Groundhog Day is generally associated with early February and was popularized by the film starring Bill Murray during which he continuously re-lives the same day with the same predictable results.

The Bolton Brewers' 2025 squad could certainly relate to the frustrations of Murray's character.

Their 5-1 loss to New Lowell in Game 1 of their semifinal series was eerily similar to their defeat in July to the Knights.

Same score. 5-1.

Same opposing starting pitcher—Brandon Norrie.

Same ballpark. North Hill Park

Virtually identical scorecard.  Eerie.

Despite this uncanny repetition of history, the Brewers turned the tables on their NDBL nemesis by thumping New Lowell 7 – 1 in Game 2.

To paraphrase Alexander Pope's famous line, “Hope sprang eternal.”

In Game 1, Knights' starting pitcher Norrie was the story. The cagy veteran threw a complete game masterpiece and neutralized the powerful Bolton offence with a brilliant mix of pitches. Norrie was also the beneficiary of some sparkling defensive plays by his infielders who took away sure hits up the middle with some Alomar-esque magic behind second base and stole doubles on scorched baseballs hit down the line at critical junctures of the game.  Timely hitting was the final ingredient in the Knights' four-run victory in the lid-lifter. 

The Brewers' bats woke up in Game 2—beating up their archrival by six runs in their home ball park.  Round trippers by Ben Sterritt and Chris Falfalios impelled the Brewers' 12-hit attack.

Fafalios drove in three runs and Sterritt led the club with three hits. Brett Chater and Sterritt scored two runs each. The visitors jumped on Knights' starter Nick Guthrie with three runs in the fourth, two more in the fifth, and two more in the seventh. Bolton starter Jack Perry was lights out-- as he was in his other playoff start versus Lisle.  The rookie starter hurled a timely two-hitter versus the powerful Knights to help his squad square the playoff series at a game apiece.  Remarkably, Perry struck out fifteen Knights and yielded just one earned run in his complete game performance. 

Alas, the Brewers could not replicate the success of Game 2 in neither Game 3 nor Game 4.

In New Lowell, Bolton was blown out 10-2 by the Knights in Game 3.

Nick Hodgson threw a complete game for the home side and scattered five hits over seven innings of work.  Kurt Roy led the Knights' offence with three RBI. John Hutchinson had three hits for the Brewers and drove in a run. 

In Bolton on Thursday night, the Brewers got a complete game from Nick Fiorocci in which the steady starter yielded only five hits and one earned run, but the bats were quieted by Norrie again in a narrow 1-0 season-ending loss.  Norrie delivered his second complete game gem of the series—providing bookend wins for the Knights in Game 1 and 4. The crafty vet held the Brewers to four hits and struck out two to earn the series-clinching W. Brett Elliott drove in Steve Bowman at the top of the third inning to give the Knights a narrow lead they did not relinquish.  

The promising surge in power in Game 2 and the flashes of brilliance throughout the playoffs could not be sustained against the Knights who sidelined the Brewers for the second consecutive season.