By Jim Stewart

The New Lowell Knights defeated the Bolton Brewers 5-1 in North Dufferin Baseball League action on Thursday night at North Hill Park.

With the road victory, the fourth-place Knights (8-4-0) pulled to within one point of the third-place Brewers (8-6-1) with three games in hand.

Bolton's potent offence—which was averaging over eight runs per game —has eked out only one run per game during their three-game losing streak.

On a cool night with the wind blowing in at North Hill Park, the Brewers were handcuffed by Knights' starter Brandon Norrie who threw a complete game gem. Norrie scattered seven hits, struck out five, and helped himself with some timely hitting, too.

New Lowell Head Coach Peter Kinghan praised Norrie's talents as a dual player.

“He brings it all the time. His slider was really working and it was fooling Bolton's hitters.  Brandon throws a top-notch game whenever he pitches for us. Hitting-wise, he's a good runner and handles the bat very well. He laid down a beauty bunt for us to move runners into scoring position to help us score two big runs in the sixth inning.”  

For the slumping Brewers, it was also another evening of squandered scoring opportunities.  Frustrations boiled over at the bottom of sixth with New Lowell leading 3-1. Veteran slugger John Hutchinson was caught looking at a marginal pitch for strike three with the bases loaded and one out – negating a prime scoring chance. Heated exchanges ensued as Hutchinson hurled invectives at the umpiring crew. The incendiary verbal barbs were the only fireworks the Brewers could muster in their loss to the Knights.

While the Brewers were squandering scoring opportunities, the Knights cashed in theirs with machine-like efficiency at critical points in the game, including their opening at-bats.

The visitors took a quick 1-0 lead at the top of the first inning and held the slim margin until the bottom of the fifth when Bolton's potent one-two combination of Chater and Ben Sterritt struck to tie the game.

Lead-off hitter Brett Chater ripped a one-out triple that rolled to the fence in left-centre.  Chater–who had three of the Brewers' seven knocks versus Norrie and made two spectacular plays at shortstop—crossed home plate when Sterritt cued a ground ball to the right side of the diamond to earn a 4-3 putout RBI. The skillful centerfielder entered Thursday's contest batting .471, but the rest of the Brewers' lineup was eerily quiet versus New Lowell.

The efficient Knights responded to the home side tying the game by manufacturing a pair of runs at the top of sixth to retake the lead.

Norrie slashed a single between third and short, Kurt Roy put down a perfect sac bunt to move Norrie to second, and Tristan Cabral laced a shot into shallow centerfield to give New Lowell a 2-1 lead.

Three batters later, Mack Morrish hit into a fielder's choice with the bases loaded to cash Cabral.

Coach Kinghan was impressed with Cabral's offensive performance.

“He had a great game – three hits and four RBI's. Tristan's been a great addition to our team this year.  He's been a big hitter for us and that's important when you play Bolton.  We have a good, fierce rivalry with the Brewers.”

After Norrie dodged the bases-loaded jam at the bottom of the sixth to stifle the frustrated Brewers, the Knights cashed in two insurance runs to provide the margin of victory.

Chris Greer opened the inning with a single that ticked off Brewers' starting pitcher Nick Fiorucci's glove for an infield single. Josh Hanley followed with a fly ball that landed just inside the right field baseline.  With two runners on and nobody out, Norrie helped his own cause by putting down a sacrifice bunt that moved both runners into scoring position.

After a nice running catch by Chater with the Brewers' infield in, Cabral dropped in an opposite field blooper over Chater's head into shallow left to plate the visitors' fourth and fifth runs.

New Lowell rolled into Bolton red hot after winning their annual tournament on the Canada Day Weekend. The Knights defeated the Dufferin-Simcoe Braves 13-2 in the championship game.

The Knights' Josh Hanley was named Tournament MVP. Hanley—hitting .417 entering Thursday's game versus Bolton – hit two home runs, batted .444 (4 for 9), and scored three runs.

Coach Kinghan connected the timely tournament victory and his team's excellent situational hitting versus Bolton.

“Our bats worked really well all weekend starting with our 9-1 win in Game 1.  We walked off Owen Sound in Game 2 in a close one. Against Dufferin-Simcoe, they ran out of pitching, but all-round, everyone did a great job at the plate and it was a good weekend for the team.  We carried some momentum from the tournament back into the regular season.”

The Knights seem to have the Brewers' number so far in 2025. New Lowell blasted the Brewers 11-1 to set Bolton's three-game losing streak in motion on June 22. The big loss two weeks ago ended the Brewers' five-game winning streak with a thud. 

The “Battle of Caledon – Part Two” – featuring the Brewers and the Caledon Cardinals—has been postponed due to the Cardinals' double header obligations in Owen Sound. Originally scheduled for Sunday, July 6, the game between the NDBL crosstown rivals has been rescheduled for Monday, July 21 at 7:30 at North Hill Park.