LEBANON — If Declan Brandis made his final pitching start for Lebanon High on Thursday, he went out in fine form.

The junior righthander allowed seven hits and one earned run while striking out one batter and walking one during a 3-1 defeat of Pelham during the NHIAA Division II teams’ first-round playoff game at Doug Ashey Field.

Brandis lasted 4 ⅔ innings and contributed two hits. He revealed after the contest that he’ll attend Kimball Union Academy as a senior, with basketball as his primary sport.

Fourth-year Lebanon coach Chauncey Wood watched the Pythons struggle with off-speed pitches during their 7-2 loss to Lebanon in the teams’ regular-season finale.

So he chose Brandis, who possesses a strong curveball but who was sick last week, to begin on the bump.

“It was just a hunch,” said Wood, whose program won a postseason game for the first time since 2021. “He controls the game. He’s very efficient, he gets ahead of batters and he uses his defense. He doesn’t get overwhelmed by any situation.”

Brandis is left prone by some, however, including a nasty, 10-day stretch recently where he developed pneumonia. Bedridden for three days, the youngster said he could feel chest pressure while shouting in the dugout Thursday and realized that he’s not quite fully healed.

“I was on antibiotics and I have an inhaler,” Brandis said. “I played a game one day and couldn’t do anything by the next morning. My lungs shrunk.”

Eighth-seeded Lebanon (11-7) had sloppy stretches this season, streaks where mental and physical errors undermined its efforts to finish significantly over .500.

The Raiders looked sharp Thursday, however, committing only one charged error and making a lone boneheaded play. The victory was their sixth in their last seven games.

“Anytime you do something enough, you get better at it,” said Wood, whose team is 2-4 in game decided by two runs or less. “We had some quality at-bats and we (capitalized) on the opportunities we were given.”

Well, eventually.

Lebanon didn’t score until the fifth inning and had runners on second and third with no outs during the first. An inning later, it had a man on third with one out and during the fourth, catcher Ryan Lundrigan, not known for his speed, was easily thrown out attempting to steal third base, ending the hosts’ at-bat.

Ninth-seeded Pelham (10-8) took a 1-0 lead during the fifth. Lebanon answered when Jack Clary singled off the third baseman’s glove during the bottom half of the frame.

The senior stole second and Nick Brill later drew a two-out walk. Ben Achmoody’s two-run single gave the hosts the lead.

The Raiders closed the day’s scoring after Achmoody stole second. Zach Aldrich struck out but Pelham’s catcher couldn’t hold the ball and then threw wildly to first base, bringing in Achmoody.

Aldrich pitched the final 2⅓ innings, allowing two hits and no runs while striking out one Python and walking one.

Lebanon’s reward for Thursday’s triumph is a Saturday afternoon game at top-seeded John Stark (16-1), which received a first-round bye.

The Generals have shut out five opponents and beat Lebanon by 6-5 and 8-1 scores earlier this season. They won the 2021 division title.

“A tough team,” Wood said. “They put the ball in play and they’ve got great pitching. Them being the No. 1 seed is just a seed. We all begin the playoffs 0-0.”

Should Lebanon upset John Stark and 12th-seeded Hanover upset fifth-seeded Bow on Saturday, the arch-rival Raiders and Bears would meet in the semifinals on Wednesday at Concord’s Memorial Field.

Tris Wykes can be reached at twykes@vnews.com.