Babe Ruth All-Stars dominate state tournament
Cade Morgan got the Glacier All-Stars off to a good start with a two-run home run in the state championship game Saturday. (Jeremy Weber photo)
Mason Peters shut down Kalispell in the Glacier 13-15 state title game Saturday, striking out seven in a shutout performance. (Jeremy Weber photo)
The Glacier Babe Ruth 15U baseball All-Stars will be headed to the regional tournament in Camas, Wash. next week after earning a state title on their home field Saturday.
The Glacier team dominated the state tourney, winning two games via the mercy rule while scoring 30 runs on 23 hits and holding its opponents to just three runs.
Eleven Glacier players picked up hits and all eleven scored at least once during the tourney, led by Danny Dunn who went 4 for 6 with three walks and scored five times. Mason Peters and Hayden Meehan also had four hits each and combined to score seven more runs and drive in eight.
Glacier overcame a slow start to earn a 6-3 win over Kalispell in the opening game of the tourney Friday morning.
The game was scoreless into the third inning, where Taylor Bryan sparked a two-out rally to get Glacier on the scoreboard. Bryan’s two-RBI single brought in Phillip Bruinsma and Peters to put Glacier up 2-0 before Dunn followed with a fly ball that sailed over the center fielder’s head, allowing Cade Morgan and Bruinsma to score to give Glacier a 4-0 advantage.
Peters pushed to lead to 5-0 with a single that scored Jon Bruce in the fourth and Dunn’s single in the fifth scored Morgan to put Glacier up 6-0.
Kalispell scored one in the sixth and two in the seventh, but couldn’t complete the comeback.
Meehan picked up the win on the mound for Glacier, pitching 5-2/3 scoreless innings while giving up just four hits and striking out seven.
It was all Glacier in the final game of the day Friday as the All-Stars picked up a 14-0 win over Hi-Line in five innings.
Glacier did the majority of its scoring in the early innings, scoring five in the second and eight in the third en route to the win.
Meehan and Braeden Miller both had two hits in the win, with Meehan driving in three runs and Miller one. Dunn was 1 for 1, walked three times and scored three times while Bruce also drew three walks and scored three runs.
George Robbins got the start and picked up the win, giving up only two hits and striking out three in three innings of action.
Glacier scored in every inning of the championship game Saturday as the All-Stars defeated Kalispell once again to earn the state title, winning 10-0 in five innings.
Morgan set the tone with a two-run blast over the left field wall in the bottom of the first inning, followed later in the inning by a RBI single by Dunn and Glacier led 3-0.
Glacier added two more in the second, one in the third and one the fourth to take a 7-0 lead into the fifth inning.
Glacier loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the fifth and went up 8-0 on a ground ball to shortstop by Orion Barta before a single to right center by Meehan brought home Robbins and Bruce to end the game via the 10-run mercy rule.
Peters, Meehan and Dunn each had two hits in the title game and combined to drive in four runs while Morgan brought home three.
Peters picked up the win with a complete-game shutout, giving up just three hits and two walks while striking out seven.
Regional play begins in Camas Monday.