Dunkirk seniors Greg Orcutt (9), Paul Trippy III (12) and Dylan Bankoski (hidden) hold up the Section VI championship plaque behind head coach Frank Jagoda after beating Lewiston-Porter in the Class A2 final Thursday at Frontier High School. P-J photo by Christian Storms

HAMBURG — The last two seasons, the Dunkirk baseball team has suffered heartbreak in the postseason. First, the Marauders lost in the sectional semifinals to eventual state-champion Depew two years ago and then, last year, falling in the championship game to Maryvale.

For the current group of seniors, it was their final chance at a sectional title Thursday when the third-seeded Marauders took on No. 8 Lewiston-Porter for the Section VI Class A2 championship at Frontier High School.

When it mattered most, the seniors showed that it was their time.

With two outs in the bottom of the sixth inning, Lewiston-Porter intentionally walked Anthony Cosme with senior Dylan Bankoski on second base since Cosme had driven in the only Dunkirk run. That brought up senior Thomas Shaffer and he made the Lancers pay for that decision with a single up the middle to score Bankoski for the 2-1 lead.

Then, with the lead again, senior pitcher Greg Orcutt would not let the title slip away striking out two more batters and stranding a runner to clinch Dunkirk its first sectional title since 2011 with a 2-1 victory.

“This year was their time,” Dunkirk head coach Frank Jagoda said. “This was the seniors’ time. They’ve put three hard years of work into this and they prevailed today. I’m so happy for them and so proud of them for what they’ve accomplished over the last three years, they’ve put together a real good legacy for themselves.”

The victory gives the Marauders their 17th sectional title and sets up a crossover matchup against Class A1 champion Amherst on Saturday at 1 p.m. back at Frontier High School.

“It feels great,” Orcutt said about winning a sectional championship. “I’ve been playing varsity sports for four years: soccer, basketball and baseball, and this is my first one. I’m glad to go out on this note, it feels good.”

Orcutt’s final inning was a perfect response after faltering earlier when Dunkirk initially grabbed the lead in the fourth inning. He finished the complete game with 11 strikeouts while allowing five hits and six walks to secure the title.

“Greg is one heck of a competitor,” Jagoda said. “He stands tall. I sent him a text this morning, ‘Stand tall, just be the guy you are, be the competitor you are and I wouldn’t want anybody else on that mound today.’ Going at it, especially in those situations, Greg really bares down and that’s the true competitor in him. He’s an outstanding player, an outstanding kid and I couldn’t be happier for him.”

Dunkirk first grabbed the lead in the fourth inning when Orcutt walked and reached second on a passed ball before Cosme drove him in with an RBI single with two outs.

However, Lewiston-Porter immediately had an answer in the fifth once the top of the lineup reared its head. Brayden Anderson stroked a double with two outs and then Charlie Jorgensen followed up with an RBI single to right field that tied the game 1-1. Jorgensen stole second and Orcutt walked Jackson Rodriguez, really putting the pressure on, but a strikeout looking kept the game tied.

That was the only time Dunkirk faltered when the Lancers put the pressure on offensively.

“I think our senior leadership, our experience was the difference,” Jagoda said about his team. “They’re a very young team (Lewiston-Porter) and I think our experience really held true, especially late in the innings. We’ve been doing better in the late innings than we have in the first couple of innings.”

In the top of the second, Orcutt got out of a bases-loaded jam with one out by striking out the final two batters. Then, in the following inning, Dunkirk saved a run at the plate when catching Lewiston-Porter attempting a double steal with runners on first and third.

“We have had a very solid defense all year,” Oructt stated. “That’s why we won our league. Thomas (Shaffer) was injured for three-quarters of the season and when he came back it was a boost. The defense has always been there, we haven’t made a lot of errors throughout the year. Clean baseball wins games and that’s what we did today.”

The Marauders had no problem putting pressure on Lewiston-Porter starting pitcher Michael McIntyre, threatening to score in every inning except the bottom of the first.

In the bottom of the second inning, a perfect relay from the outfield ended the inning with Henry Leone being tagged out at home after a Shaffer single. Then, in the bottom of the third, Gabe Valentine was caught stealing third with one out and in the same frame Paul Trippy was stranded on third after being walked and reaching third on a missed pick off attempt.

After scoring in the fourth, Dunkirk almost struck again in the fifth when consecutive singles by Valentine and Trippy put the pair on second and third with one out. That opportunity was then thwarted when a failed squeeze attempt turned into a double play as the bunt from Josh Lemanski was caught and Valentine was forced out back at third.

“Lew-Port, for as young as they are, they played an outstanding game,” Jagoda said. “We’d send a guy home, he was out. We tried a squeeze bunt, he was out. We fake bunted and went to third, he was out. We tried to mix it up a little bit based on their experience and finally getting into the sixth inning I just let these kids play. I’m proud of how they responded.”

While Lewiston-Porter managed to contain the Dunkirk offense, the Marauders scored when it mattered most in the bottom of the sixth and that began from an unlikely source, a leadoff walk by Davian Alvalle. Bankoski pinch ran for Alvalle and the intentional walk to Cosme set the table for Shaffer to have a legendary moment driving in the game-winning run for the sectional title.

“I give a big shoutout to Davi Alvalle,” Jagoda said. “He came in for Dylan and walked, then Dylan went back in the game. That was just an outstanding experience for him. … Thomas can accept that challenge and he did. Sometimes when they walk a guy to pitch to you, that pumps you up and I’m sure that’s how he felt.”

Despite opportunities every inning to score, Dunkirk (18-3) managed just two runs, but that’s all it would need to capture the sectional title.

“It has been over a decade, which is way too long,” Jagoda said about Dunkirk’s last title. “Sometimes I don’t think we win enough, but you can’t fault these guys, sometimes things happen. We had a few lean years, but we’re league champs, we’re section champs and that says a lot the way these guys play ball.”