ACH Legion wins division title

HARTLINE — Saturday’s sweep of Ferris allowed the Almira/Coulee-Hartline Senior Legion baseball team to clinch a division title, finishing the regular season 16-0 and winning the Area 3 AA National Division.

The Warriors defeated the Saxons 10-8 and 12-5 in Saturday’s doubleheader.

“Ferris altogether, every arm they had, was as good as anybody we’ve probably seen all summer,” head coach Mike Correia said. “They have a pretty good (pitching) staff.”

ACH took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning, later extending the lead to 3-1 in the top of the third inning with an RBI single by first baseman Josh Booker. Ferris tied the game in the bottom of that same inning, and the two teams traded the lead before the Warriors scored five runs in the top of the sixth inning with RBI by pitcher Carter Pitts, Booker, second baseman Hunter Flaa and Kaysen Pryor — all with two outs on the board. The Saxons added two runs in the bottom of the seventh, but couldn’t overcome the deficit and fell 10-8 to ACH.

Booker drove in a team-high four runs in the win, while he and shortstop Caden Correia, Pitts, Flaa and Pryor all collected two hits.

“It’s just big hits in big times,” Mike said. “Guys getting on base, whether that’s a clutch hit or a walk. Our guys — not that we played stellar defense, we played decent defense — but for the most part, we executed much better on Saturday as far as not leaving guys on base.”

The Warrior offense got off to a fast start in the nightcap of Saturday’s doubleheader, holding an early 7-2 lead before going on to win the game 12-5. First baseman Grayson Beal led the team with three RBI, while Jase Cox went three-for-three at the plate to pace the Warriors.

A closely contested opening game served as a wake-up call, Mike said. 

“We won 10-8 in that first game and I think that kind of woke the guys up a little bit, where we don’t have to go through the motions to win the second game – we actually have to play,” Mike said. 

Saturday’s doubleheader began 15 hours after the Warriors wrapped up a Friday evening doubleheader against AA Gonzaga Prep, where ACH earned 11-5 and 12-8 wins over the Bullpups.

“We talked about it on Friday before we played — play a doubleheader in 98-degree heat, and we’re going to turn around and play another one on Saturday in Spokane. It’s taxing physically, but it’s going to tax us even more mentally. We talked about that, and I was really happy with how the guys performed.”

ACH advances to the Area 3 district tournament, which opens with pool play Wednesday. The Warriors play Coeur d’Alene at noon and Mt. Spokane at 5 p.m. The top two teams from each pod advance to bracket play, which runs from Friday through Sunday.

Seven of the eight teams in bracket play qualify for the state tournament hosted in Spokane later this month.

To advance in the postseason, Mike said it comes down to pitching.

“It’s going to take guys throwing strikes and minimizing pitch counts,” Mike said. “Having fresh pitching that we can rely on for other games. It’s always managing pitching.”

Ian Bivona may be reached at ibivona@columbiabasinherald.com. 

Box Scores

Game One

ACH: 2-0-1-0-2-5-0 10

FER: 0-1-2-1-2-0-2 8

Game Two

FER: 1-2-0-2-0-0-0 5

ACH: 2-5-1-1-0-3-X 12

    Almira/Coulee-Hartline Legion first baseman Grayson Beal, right, swings at a pitch during a game against Gonzaga Prep on Friday. Beal recorded three RBI in the nightcap of Saturday’s doubleheader against Ferris.