If it were a boxing match, those watching the bout would have gawked with intrigue as the reigning champion was backed into the ropes, getting drilled by the challenger. Fortunately, the Beach Haven Bocce League isn’t nearly as brutal as boxing. But there they were, the two-time defending champs – Rita Rapella and Steve Jusick – on the verge of being dethroned by Lou Schettini and Delores Sheppard late in the deciding game of the best-of-three championship match.

“Going into that last round, I just kept thinking how we would get lucky enough to win,” said Jusick, who scored the…