By Marc Thaler
Staff Writer

Goffstown centerfielder and leadoff hitter Jay Bouchard tries to bunt his way on base in the top of the third inning against Lamprey River on July 7. Although Bouchard's bunt was a beauty, the attempt went into the books as a fielder's choice after the opposition threw to third base for the force out. (Marc Thaler Photo)

Talent can take teams extremely far in tournament action. Talent alone, however, doesn't always translate into a shot at the title. A little bit of good fortune is also key to making a run at the crown.

Goffstown's 11- and 12-yearold Little League all-stars certainly had the talent to triumph in the District I bracket of the 2005 New Hampshire Little League baseball tourney. But they were bitten by the bug toting tough luck.

Starting the summer season with a 3-0 win against Manchester Central, Goffstown lost its next contest to Concord- American in extra innings, 7-4, sending the locals into the loser's bracket.

The boys. next test on Thursday, July 7, at Villa Augustina Field, would result in an early D-I exit. Goffstown was shut out by Lamprey River, 5-0, unable to muster a hit.

"We ran into their best pitcher and we didn't score," said Goffstown head coach Steve Bond. "And you don't win no matter who you pitch if you don't score."

Described by Bond as a team that relies on making contact and utilizing its speed, Goffstown watched Lamprey River's Addison Lufbery neutralize those strengths with a powerful fastball and mystifying bender.

"If we can't execute the bunt and can't force the plays, then we kind of lose our advantage," the Goffstown head coach said.

According to Bond, Goffstown 's hitters practiced taking swings against pitches that dropped in a 12-to-6 fashion. But the boys had minimal experience connecting with pitches that moved side-to-side - the case in the Lamprey River contest, Bond said.

"The kids don't see it all year. The kids that play all season and get to make it to the tournament, they see pitches that are nothing like they.ve ever seen," Bond said. "We try, as coaches, to prepare them for what they might see. And you can't prepare them enough, really."

Goffstown's difficulty making contact at the plate started early. Lufbery set down the locals. first six batters without seeing the ball leave the infield, as a groundout and pop-up were bookends to four straight strikeouts.

Later in the game, Lamprey River's pitcher retired eight straight Goffstown batters.

Trailing, 2-0, in the third frame, the locals mounted a threat when Brandon Shea, Jay Bouchard and Ryan Lange loaded the bases with two outs. But the chance to score went by the boards.

"Good hitting is stopped by good pitching. And he stopped us cold," Bond said. "We checked the (Little League) affidavit and I don't think anybody scored a run on him in the whole tournament. It's not just a fluke that he pitched the way he did (against us)."

Still, the sting of elimination hardly had a lasting effect on the group, the head coach said. Even after LR took control of a tight 2-0 contest with three fifth-inning runs, Bond's boys remained upbeat on the diamond and in the dugout.

The bottom line, Bond said, was his squad ran into two top notch opponents early in D-I action, erasing the opportunity to compete for a third straight district championship.

"I remember last year, we absolutely could not beat them," Lufbery said of Goffstown. "They came to our field and basically crushed us."

"This year we had very high hopes of going (to the district finals) again ..." said Bond, who coached nine of the players on Goffstown's 2005 team for the past three seasons. "The coaches wonder what we did wrong. But the kids are out there and they.re smiling. And you realize they don't have a care in the world.

"That's the stuff you walk away with as a coach, as a parent," he added. "As someone who's spent three summers with these guys."