Lehi Sports
Falcon baseball finishes 2nd in 6A
Beky Beaton / Lehi Free Press
The No. 7 Skyridge baseball team gave the defending champs all they wanted in the final series, but No. 1 American Fork was able to prevail by making just a play or two more than the Falcons in each of the two series games.
The program achieved a 19-14 overall record in varsity contests for the season and added a silver state trophy to the school display case.
May 22: American Fork 2, Skyridge 1
Played at Utah Valley University, the first game of the championship series was a dandy pitcher’s duel. Senior Greyson Bauer didn’t do anything fancy; he just kept throwing strikes and getting outs for the Falcons. He went the distance and yielded just five hits.
The Cavemen took the lead in the bottom of the first inning when opposing pitcher Kenny Johnson doubled to the wall to bring in a runner.
In the top of the fourth inning, sophomore leadoff batter Luke Robley got a free pass when he was hit by a pitch. Senior infielder Rip Roberts then hit a sharp grounder which was fielded cleanly near second base but thrown into the dugout, allowing the runner to score.
After multiple discussions between the umpires and coaches, the officials allowed Skyridge to keep the run.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Caveman Bode Gaggero laced a stand-up triple into the center-right gap. Two batters later, he came home when Cache Poulson flew out to the warning track to create a 2-1 advantage.
Neither team was able to score again so that’s how the contest ended. The Falcons left four runners on base.
May 23: American Fork 5, Skyridge 3
Roberts got the call to pitch the second game of the series and senior Tate Young relieved him about halfway through the contest. They both had solid outings, but American Fork capitalized on three homers and a triple to put all their runs on the board.
It started early. Gaggero hit a home run to right field on the third pitch of the top of the first inning and a triple later in the turn scored a second run. However, the Falcons answered in their half.
Senior outfielder Miles Robinson turned a leadoff single to center field into a double with his speed. He then scored when Roberts hit a ground ball past second base and made it to third on the subsequent relays. Roberts came across on a single into the center-right gap by junior outfielder Zayden Bye.
In the top of the second inning with two outs and a runner on, Gaggero hit another long ball to almost the same spot and scored two runs to double the Caveman advantage to 4-2.
Again Skyridge responded. The leadoff batter was junior infielder Bo Larson, and he doubled to center field to open the turn. With two outs and Larson at third, Robinson drove him across with a single to right field to cut the deficit in half, but that was all the Falcons would get.
Poulson added a solo homer for American Fork in the top of the seventh inning. In the bottom half, junior outfielder Mason Omae led off with a sharp grounder down the third-base line that he was able to beat out to reach first, but he became the last of six runners to be stranded in the contest.
