DENVER — Cherry Creek beat Chaparral in the morning, then rallied to top ThunderRidge in the afternoon with a walk-off hit during the Class 5A state baseball tournament.
Category: Baseball
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Caliche wins 1A, claims first baseball title in school history
LAKEWOOD — The heartbreak ended for Caliche on Thursday afternoon on Keli McGregor Field at All Star Park in Lakewood.
After coming up short in the 8-man football title game and losing by a point in the Class 1A boys basketball championship this school year, the Buffaloes were able to finally hoist a championship trophy.
Caliche dominated the 1A baseball title game, defeating Dove Creek 17-1 to win the school first-ever state baseball championship.
“It’s relief. The pressure has been lifted off,” said Caliche junior Austin Yahn, who reached base and scored in all five plate-appearances in the championship game. “We finally got first.”
More photos. (Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com) The majority of the Buffaloes’ key players were on both those state runner-up teams in the fall and winter.
“It was tough being second place in both football and basketball,” Caliche senior Mitch Davison said. “It’s really awesome to win it in baseball. We wish we could have got those other two, but this feels great.”
Davison was the starting quarterback and leading rusher for Caliche’s football team. He was also the leading scorer on the basketball team this winter. The senior played a huge role Thursday afternoon in the Buffaloes snaring a state title that eluded them all school year.
Davison pitched a complete-game on the mound. He gave up just one unearned run to the Bulldogs (7-15) in the bottom of the fourth inning. He surrendered just three hits and struck out nine to earn his fifth victory of the season.
“I knew it wouldn’t be high scoring, for them (Dove Creek) anyways,” Caliche coach J.P. Lambrecht said after his team completed a five-game postseason run where the Buffaloes outscored their opponents 63-3. “Mitch throws good. He is always round the plate and throws strikes. He has been a phenomenal thrower for me.”
The senior was also effective at the plate. Davison had a big two-run double in the second inning that pushed the Buffaloes lead to 5-0. He also pulled a two-run home run over the left field fence in the top of the fourth inning, extending Caliche’s lead to 8-0.
“I was just swinging for a good base hit,” Davison said of his second home run of the season. “It ended up being a home run.”
Despite his monster game, Davison deflected the credit.
“My teammates behind me had a great game. They played very well,” Davison said of his defense that committed just one error. “It wasn’t just me. Everyone helped out.”
Evidence that it was a team effort is Caliche’s No. 9 hitter Jayden Stieb. The senior took advantage of two walks and two errors to reach base and eventually score on all four of his at-bats.
More photos. (Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com) Caliche (12-11) managed 13 hits and took advantage of eight walks and eight defensive errors by Dove Creek.
“You’ve got to get on base with walks, errors and hits, whatever,” Lambrecht said. “You have to put the pressure on the defense.”
Dove Creek’s lone run came on an RBI double by junior Alex Ogas in the bottom of the fourth inning. Caliche answered in the sixth inning with two runs, but really poured it on in the top of the seventh with a seven-run inning.
“I think we were pretty calm and confident in ourselves,” said Davison, who struck out the final two Bulldog batters to end the game and proceeded to be at the bottom of a dog pile near the mound as Caliche players celebrated the win. “We’ve been here a couple of times in state championship games. We played to the best of our ability.”
Yahn admitted it was a struggle to get into baseball mode after losing the state basketball title game 52-51 on March 15. The Buffaloes lost their first six games of the season.
“Our record shows it took awhile to focus, we are only one game above .500,” Yahn said. “It didn’t feel right playing baseball until about mid-season. We turned it around.”
Caliche players celebrate winning the 1A baseball title. More photos. (Dennis Pleuss) -
Photos: Caliche wins 1A baseball championship
LAKEWOOD — Caliche captured the 1A baseball championship on Thursday with a 17-1 defeat of Dove Creek.
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Notebook: Jeffco Stadium set to show off improvements at state track this weekend
Jeffco Stadium’s new videoboard has live video capability, and also displays results and lineups. (Dennis Pleuss) Over the course of the past year, Jeffco Stadium has undergone a transformation. When the state track meet begins on Thursday, the facility will, in effect, cut the ribbon on a variety of new improvements.
Included: a resurfaced track, a new video scoreboard, a new timing system and a new drainage system.
“We made some real investment into it that’s really going to bring us into the future,” Jeffco executive director of athletics Jim Thyfault said Monday.
“Trust me,” added Ezra Paddock, manager of operations for Jeffco, “this has taken effort from every department in the district.”
A big driving force behind much of the improvements?
“We take seriously the opportunity we have to host the state track meet every year.” Thyfault said. “We feel like our part of that, besides providing a facility, is providing a quality facility.
“Time was rolling around where we needed to resurface the track. We felt if we could upgrade the surface and make it an even better one, then that’s what we’re going to do because we feel the state deserves that.”
The surface was part one to the project, along with the new drainage system. “Our surface was at the end of its lifespan,” Paddock said. The new surface is what’s known as a sandwich system and is used by many colleges and universities.
“It’s state-of-the-art,” Paddock said. “It’s the same thing colleges run on.”
And whereas before Jeffco workers often were reduced to five-gallon buckets to be rid of standing water during larger rainstorms, the new drainage system easily handles a lot of moisture. That was tested early on during last fall’s massive flooding.
Jeffco Stadium. (Dennis Pleuss) At the same time of the resurfacing, Jeffco buried all wires that had once surrounded the track.
Next came the new videoboard. The process started last summer when Thyfault was talking with a track coach, who asked about running the timing clock on the scoreboard.
“It just got me to thinking, and I got talking to Ezra about it,” Thyfault said. “Anyway, I ran it by my immediate supervisor here, and he thought it was great idea.”
Eventually, Jeffco secured a board from Daktronics, a national company which provides videoboards for some of the biggest sporting facilities in the world — including the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Madison Square Garden and Auburn’s Jordan-Hare Stadium.
“Our job now is to go out and sell some advertising to help offset the funding,” Thyfault said.
The video board was first fired up about a week ago. It has live video capability, and also displays results and lineups.
“It really adds to the experience for our kids,” Paddock said. “It’s just such a big difference. We’ve only had it up for a week, and they enjoy it so much.”
During the state meet, the board will provide live results — delivered by the new timing system, which was the final piece to the project.
The Lynx system is “the same system that they use at the Olympics,” Paddock said, and is wired directly to the new videoboard.
Thyfault said Jeffco is mulling putting new videoboards at its other stadiums — the North Area Athletic Complex, and Trailblazer Stadium — as well.
“It just all depends,” Thyfault said. “We’re going to go out and meet with some businesses and hope to partner up with them, and try and make it a win-win for both of us. If it ends up being a good process, then it could move us into being able to get scoreboards.”
Among other future ideas? Family move nights, using Jeffco Stadium’s new video screen, during the summer.
Thursday will mark the 30th year of the past 32 that Jeffco has hosted the state track meet. It doesn’t look to be going anywhere else anytime soon.
“We love to represent Jeffco when CHSAA comes out and hosts the state meet here,” Paddock said. “We try to make it as first class as it can be.”
TJ grad listed as No. 5 prospect for MLB Draft
Baseball America released its top 100 prospects for the 2014 MLB Draft on Wednesday. Thomas Jefferson grad Kyle Freeland, a junior at the University of Evansville, is No. 5 on that list.
Freeland, a left-handed pitcher, is 9-1 with a 1.75 ERA in 12 starts this season, and has 111 strikeouts to just seven walks. His stock really took off during a breakout summer in the Cape Cod League, where he was an All-Star after leading all players in strikeouts (48 in nine regular season games, and another 10 in a playoff game).
Also making the top 100 is Regis Jesuit senior David Peterson, who broke his fibula just prior to the season but made a quick recovery to return and pitch in mid-April. Peterson is 1-0 with a 1.17 ERA in 12 innings pitched this season. As a junior, Peterson was 6-3 with a 3.26 ERA.
Peterson is committed to Oregon.
Short stuff
- Valor Christian graduate Wyndham Clark was featured by the Golf Channel on Mother’s Day. Now at Oklahoma State, Clark shared the story of his mother’s battle with breast cancer and how he honors her through his game.
- Kent Denver dedicated a new sports pavilion last night, naming it for longtime football coach and athletic director Scott Yates and his family. The new facility — known as the Yates Pavilion — will house basketball and volleyball, and seat 850 people this fall. Here’s a photo. Coaching icon Dick Katte, a longtime figure at Denver Christian, attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday, as did a number of former players and coaches. “It is gorgeous,” boys basketball coach Todd Schayes said of the facility. “Now I have to make sure to put a strong basketball product in there next year.”
- Valor Christian swim coach Rob Nasser regularly puts out rankings during the season which essentially comprise the best times around Colorado. His most anticipated rankings come out just prior to the state meet, and are based upon the psych sheets. Well, they came out Wednesday and amount to a projected finish at state. The favorites are Air Academy in 4A and Regis Jesuit in 5A. Find the full rankings at cohsswimanddive.blogspot.com.
- Joe Rausch, largely successful as the boys basketball coach at Sand Creek for the past four seasons, will take over the same position at Pine Creek, according to the Colorado Springs Gazette. Rausch was 73-30 at Sand Creek, and led the 4A Scorpions to the Final 4 in March.
- Arapahoe’s Austin Shindoll scored an incredible behind-the-back game-winner in overtime during the 5A boys lacrosse quarterfinals. Check out this photo. There’s also video here; the goal comes right around 1:56.
- If you missed it, here was what Jeffco Stadium looked like on Monday during the snowstorm. Presumably, the new drainage system had no problem with the melt.
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Evergreen baseball wins district with walk-off home run
(Dan Mohrmann) EVERGREEN — In the bottom of the seventh inning, Josh Bellatti sat on a fastball and drove it the opposite way, clearing the outfield fence, but in foul territory. When that same pitch came across the plate again, he didn’t miss.
Josh Bellatti’s three-run blast in the bottom of the seventh gave the Evergreen Cougars a 7-4 win over Lewis-Palmer allowing them to claim the 4A District 2 title and move on in the 4A state playoffs.
The win capped off a roller coaster of a game that had the Cougars up 4-0, only to lose the lead in the top half of the seventh and win the game in walk-off fashion. They did it all without their ace pitcher, Brock Burke, who threw seven strong innings in the day’s first game to advance the Cougars to the district title game.
“The team we just beat is a very good team, up and down the lineup,” Cougars coach Dale Hutchings said. “But our guys stayed right with it and pitch-by-pitch, play-by-play they did a great job.”
A 3-1 win over the Air Academy Kadets earlier in the day earned the Cougars the right to play for a chance to move on. The Cougars fell behind early as Air Academy third baseman Jeremy Hockmuth crushed a home run to center field in the first inning. Burke didn’t let that phase him and would go on to strikeout 13 Kadets en route to the win.
“The fastball was working. I kept looking off the curveball, but the fastball was working really well,” Burke said. “I figured (the home run) was a fluke thing and the next time he (Hockmuth) came up I threw three straight fastballs and he didn’t touch one of them.”
The Rangers were dominant themselves in their first game of the day. They found themselves in a pitchers duel with Fort Morgan and their ace Jared Bohm, but after a few adjustments, they were able to start making contact with the ball, grabbing a 3-0 lead on three-straight singles in the fourth inning. Paul Tillotson added a home run in the fifth to give the Rangers a clean 4-0 win, setting up their game with the Cougars.
“We talked to the team — the game is all about corrections — and so after the first two innings we started making corrections and crowding the plate a little bit more,” Rangers coach Tom McCabe said. “They made good adjustments and we expected a good game out of (pitcher Colin) Cicere and we got more than we expected to tell you the truth.”
The Rangers once again found themselves in an offensive funk early in their game against the Cougars. Through the first four innings they mustered only two hits and failed to score a run. The Cougars on the other hand, were able to get to Tillotson — the staff ace for the Rangers — early.
A couple of a errors and a wild pitch in the second inning allowed the Cougars to get on the game first and the frustration got to the sophomore hurler as he gave up a two-run home run to catcher Dylan Schmoker. Daniel Gibbins added a solo-shot in the fourth, putting the Cougars up 4-0.
“Defense is part of the game, you make an error here and an error there,” McCabe said. “It’s acceptable and our boys did a great job.”
Hope was not lost for the Rangers, however, as a fifth inning, three-run home run by leftfielder Conner Weeth pulled Lewis-Palmer to within a run. The Rangers would find that run in the top of the seventh as Weeth walked and was moved to third on a Tillotson single. The Cougars intentionally walked Conner Haws setting up a P.J. Underwood game-tying single.
Despite still having the bases loaded with one out, the Rangers wouldn’t be able to bring in another run and the two teams went into the bottom of the seventh tied 4-4.
It was there that two runners would reach, and a swing of the bat from Josh Bellatti would bring everyone in and keep in the Cougars in the hunt for a state championship.
“Their pitcher was having trouble with the off-speed pitch so I knew he was going fastballs all the way,” Josh Bellatti said. “I usually like to pull the ball but I knew with two strikes he wouldn’t give me anything good to hit and he was working that outside corner so I knew if I was going to put the ball in play I would have to hit it to right field.”
The walk-off win for the Cougars capped an exciting day in the 4A field that saw three of the state’s top four seeds fall. Evergreen now moves on to the state bracket which will be played next weekend.
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Caliche, Dove Creek to meet in 1A baseball’s championship game
(Bert Borgmann/CHSAANow.com) DENVER — The bus showed up late Saturday morning to pick up the Caliche Buffaloes (11-10) for their trip to the Class 1A Regional/Semifinal Tournament at Denver’s All-City Stadium. And then it had to stop for fuel before starting the 151-mile trek.
Not really an auspicious beginning to a trip that would prove hugely successful. In fact, for coach J.P. Lambrecht it was cause for worry — but for his team, not so much.
“For showing up late, the kids really responded well,” he said. “We have an experienced crew and they came out and did what they needed to do.”
The team showed up at 9:25, just enough time to get a little loose and take a quick infield before lining up against Cornerstone Christian (10-6) for the 10:00 a.m. first pitch.
That “experienced” crew pounded out nine hits and took advantage of five CCA errors to take an 11-1 win.
In the second regional game, last year’s state runner-up Holly (8-7) slipped in two runs in the top of the seventh to get past Stratton. Holly’s battery featured two freshmen, Yadiel Vidal at catcher and Ricardo Juarez on the mound.
In the semifinal game, though, Caliche’s athleticism really showed. Many of the players had already played on the Buffalo’s second place 8-man football team and state championship basketball team. In fact, the group of players on this year’s team have multiple state titles in basketball.
“This is an athletic crew and they’ve been together since kindergarten. They know each other well — maybe too well,” he noted with a laugh. “We don’t have a lot of ‘baseball’ players per se, but we have a lot of good athletes. Only a couple of them play any summer ball.”
Pitcher Mitch Davison scattered four hits and the offense belted out 11 hits, as the Buffaloes will move on to face Dove Creek (7-14) on Thursday at 11:00 a.m. at Coca-Cola All-Star Park in Lakewood for the 1A title.
Dove Creek got past Peetz 9-7 and then, in a typical 1A baseball game, downed Eads 23-18 in a two-hour, 45-minute affair. Eads (9-9) had beaten Elbert (9-5) 3-1 in the regional game.
“These kids are fun to coach,” Lambrecht noted. “They have been playing with each other on the high school teams since they were freshmen. We have several four-year starters.”
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Chaparral baseball slams its way into 5A state tournament
Chaparral sophomore Addison Kaasch, second from the right, is greeted by teammates Paul Green, Andrew Thomas, Keenan Eaton and Gage Gerken after Kaasch’s grand slam home run Saturday afternoon at Paul DeAngelis Field at Columbine High School. The Wolverines took a 12-3 victory to advance to the state tournament next week. (Dennis Pleuss) LITTLETON — Chaparral rode a wave of momentum Saturday to win the Class 5A District 3 baseball title and a berth into the eight-team double-elimination state tournament next week.
Behind a remarkable outing on the mound by senior Brad Brown, the fifth-place team out of the tough Continental League shocked Columbine with a 12-3 victory on the Rebels’ home field.
“This season has been up-and-down and all around,” Chaparral coach Tony Persichina said. “We just battled back. It’s a testament to those guys. They are phenomenal kids.”
Chaparral sophomore Addison Kaasch forces out Columbine junior Michael Tait (23) and throws on to first to get out Columbine senior Donny Ortiz on a double play in the first inning Saturday. (Dennis Pleuss) The Wolverines dug themselves a 6-0 hole in the district semifinal at Frank DeAngelis Field at Columbine High School against Prairie View. Chaparral (13-8) battled back for an 11-8 victory to advance to the district title game against Columbine (19-2).
“I knew my guys would pull it out,” Brown said about his team’s comeback against Prairie View. “We’ve done what we’ve needed to do all year long to get to where we are at now.”
Chaparral started off against the Rebels right where it left off. The Wolverines put up four runs in the top of the second inning and added another pair in the fourth inning to take a 6-0 lead.
Sophomore Addison Kaasch started the damage with an RBI double in the second inning off Columbine pitcher Isaish Montoya. A pair of Rebel errors, along with RBI singles by Spencer Olwell and Paul Green gave the Wolverines a quick 4-0 advantage.
Columbine senior Austin Anderson reacts after striking out in the fourth inning Saturday. Anderson did have an RBI double and RBI single in the final two innings, but it wasn’t enough as the Rebels lost the Class 5A District 3 championship game 12-3 to Chaparral. (Dennis Pleuss) “I wasn’t surprised how our team hit today,” Kaasch said of Chaparral’s 12 runs against the Rebels, a team that hadn’t given up double-digit runs in a game all season. “We had a good game today.”
Kaasch put the exclamation point on for Chaparral with a grand slam home run in a six-run top of the seventh inning for the Wolverines.
“Chaparral got the upper-hand with some early runs,” Columbine coach Chuck Gillan said. “We just couldn’t figure it out. We are a momentum-type team. Usually if we start hitting everyone gets it going. He (Brown) mowed down the top of our lineup that first go-around and it was kind of a slow start for us.”
Brown actually had a no-hitter going through five innings. Columbine senior Donny Ortiz broke up the no-no with a single in the bottom of the sixth inning. Senior Austin Anderson followed up with an RBI single and sophomore Tommy Gillman drove in a run on a groundout to close the deficit to 6-2.
However, Kaasch’s slam in the top of the seventh and Columbine’s fourth fielding error of the game pushed the deficit to 12-2 going to the bottom of the seventh.
“(Chaparral) played well. The credit goes to those guys over there. Our kids didn’t quit. They just couldn’t get any momentum today,” coach Gillman said. “The fourth, fifth and sixth it looked like we were starting to wake up. Then (Chaparral) put it away by scoring a bunch of runs.”
Columbine had its bats going against Legacy senior pitcher Lucas Gilbreath. The lefty had a 6-1 record and 1.20 ERA going into the district semifinal against the Rebels. Columbine cruised to a 10-0 victory in six innings to open the district tournament.
The Rebels’ ace, senior Blake Weiman had 11 strikeouts in the complete-game shutout to grab his seventh victory on the mound this season.
It was Brown’s turn to shine on the mound in the district championship game. The senior lefty had an ERA of 4.15 and suffered four losses this season, including a 13-0 loss to Regis where he gave up eight runs in the first inning.
“I put in the work all week,” said Brown who gave up three runs on just three hits for the complete-game victory. “I knew I’d come out with some good stuff.”
The Wolverines will face conference rival Mountain Vista in the opening round of the double-elimination state tournament at 12:30 p.m. Friday, May 16, at All-City Field. Mountain Vista edge Chaparral 2-1 in their league meeting back on April 21.
“I think we are one of the more talented teams out here,” Brown said. “As long as we play our best ball I think we’ve got a pretty good shot.”
Chaparral senior Brad Brown fires to the plate during Saturday’s District 3 championship game Saturday against Columbine. Brown had a no-hitter through five innings and eventually got the complete-game victory against the Rebels. (Dennis Pleuss) -
5A baseball’s state tournament bracket
The 2014 state tournament bracket for Class 5A baseball.
Sites: All-City Field (Denver) and Bishop Machebeuf HS (Denver)
Go to: District brackets
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Class 5A
Click on a game number to see details, including time and site. ^- Indicates extra innings.
Bracket notes:
- The site director will flip a coin for home team in all games.
- The loser of Game 11 (L11) and winner of Game 11 (W11) may change places so that previous opponents are not matched. CHSAA will make determination.
- If three teams remain after Game 13, the winner of Game 11 (W11) draws a bye to Game 15. If W11 loses Game 12, there will be three teams left and W11 earns the bye. W12 then plays W13 to reach finals. This spot is marked by a percentage sign (%) on the bracket.
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4A baseball’s state tournament bracket
The 2014 state tournament bracket for Class 4A baseball.
Sites: All-Star Park (Lakewood) and Cherokee Trail HS (Aurora)
Go to: District brackets
[divider]
Class 4A
Click on a game number to see details, including time and site. ^- Indicates extra innings.
The winners/losers of game 11 were switched to ensure that each team is not playing a team it had played earlier in the tournament.
Bracket notes:
- The site director will flip a coin for home team in all games.
- The loser of Game 11 (L11) and winner of Game 11 (W11) may change places so that previous opponents are not matched. CHSAA will make determination.
- If three teams remain after Game 13, the winner of Game 11 (W11) draws a bye to Game 15. If W11 loses Game 12, there will be three teams left and W11 earns the bye. W12 then plays W13 to reach finals. This spot is marked by a percentage sign (%) on the bracket.
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3A baseball’s state tournament bracket
The 2014 state tournament bracket for Class 3A baseball.
Sites: Butch Butler Field (Greeley) and Niwot HS
Go to: District brackets
[divider]
Class 3A
Click on a game number to see details, including time and site. ^- Indicates extra innings.
Note: Game 11 was switched to ensure that no team was playing a team it had played earlier in the tournament. The game 11 winners/losers were switched to accommodate this.
Bracket notes:
- The site director will flip a coin for home team in all games.
- The loser of Game 11 (L11) and winner of Game 11 (W11) may change places so that previous opponents are not matched. CHSAA will make determination.
- If three teams remain after Game 13, the winner of Game 11 (W11) draws a bye to Game 15. If W11 loses Game 12, there will be three teams left and W11 earns the bye. W12 then plays W13 to reach finals. This spot is marked by a percentage sign (%) on the bracket.