PITTSFIELD, Mass. -- After winning its last two American Legion playoff games by a combined 26-0, Post 68 got off to a bit of a slow start on Friday against Westfield Post 124.

 

The visitors earned a leadoff walk on four pitches, stole second and followed with a single against Post 68 starter Ethan Forfa.

 

The message from Forfa’s former Wahconah teammate and current batterymate Matt Schneider: We’ve got this.

 

“He threw six straight balls to start, so I just told him, ‘Hit your spot. You’ve got a great offense behind you and a great defense, so just hit your spots,’ “ Schneider said.

 

Schneider definitely backed up his words in an eventual 10-3 Post 68 victory.

 

The recent Wahconah grad and future Assumption College Greyhound went 4-for-4 with a triple, two doubles and four runs batted in to drive Post 68’s offense from the cleanup spot.

 

After Westfield took a 1-0 lead after the first half inning, Schneider drove in Chad Shade and Jack Cooney with a rocket to left field for a triple to take a 2-1 lead that the hosts never lost.

 

Schneider ended up scoring on Simon Nassif’s sacrifice to short right field to make it 3-1.

 

Then, after Post 124 scored a run in the top of the third to cut the lead in half, Schneider doubled home Cooney to make it a two-run game again.

 

Post 68 did most of its damage in the fourth, when the team batted around and ended the night for Westfield starter Devon Baker.

 

Patrick Colvin got it started with single up the middle on his way to a 3-for-3 night.

 

Then Abdiel Cotto-Hernandez reached on a bunt single, and Chad Shade followed with a bunt single down the third base line to load the bases. A couple of wild pitches scored Colvin and Cotto-Hernandez. Cooney drew a walk and stole second before Matt Koperniak singled and Schneider doubled to make it 9-2.

 

That ended things for Baker, and two batters later Schneider came home on a Matt Stracuzzi ground ball to end the scoring for Post 68.

 

“What’s that? We’ve scored more than 30 runs the last three games?” Schneider said. “And we’ve only given up three runs since the tournament started. The chemistry is great right now. It’s something we’ve been talking about a lot.

 

“It’s starting to jell. We’re starting to hit.”

 

Post 68 will be home again at Clapp Park on Sunday at 2 against an opponent to be determined.