Bulldogs stay on track for state title

Nate Akesson hits a two-run inside-the-park home run in the state championship game at Wheeler Field in Centralia.

Colfax baseball players finished a run to the state 2B title Saturday at Wheeler Field in Centralia with a 5-3 win in the ninth inning against a 25-0 team from Tri-Cities Prep. The title game came after the Bulldogs Friday night edged Wahkiakum 6-5 with a comeback win in the semi-final round.

"I just can't say enough about this team," coach Mike Perry commented.

He noted Colfax booked the pitching and the hitting and committed just one error in the two games at the final four.

Colfax on the playoff trail booked most of its wins in a come-from-behind mode. They fell in a three-run hole in the Friday night semi, and Saturday they weathered a two-run homer in the eighth inning of the title game but stayed on track to score two in the top of the ninth for the 5-3 title win.

Cal Gregory, who went to the mound for Colfax in the seventh inning against TCP, gave up the homer, but he came back in the ninth to cut off the TCP charge by serving three pop-flys.

Gregory took over the mound from Parker Huber who pitched another solid game over the first six innings.

Colfax actually started the title tilt with a score in the first inning, and TCP trailed until scoring one in the fourth. The 1-1 tie stayed on the scoreboard until the team went into an extra eighth inning when Colfax scored two runs. Blake Bodey and Gregory opened with singles, and Logan Gingerich advanced them with a bunt. A wild pitch off the bunt advanced the runners. Danny Robinson was hit by a pitch, and Kyle Appel rapped a sacrifice fly.

Logan Mercado homered for the Jaguars in the bottom of the eighth to score two runs and tie the game at 3-3.

Colfax came back in the top of the ninth with Matt Sharp and Bodey getting walks, Gregory and Gingerich hitting RBI singles and Robinson drawing a walk.

The Jaguars failed to answer in the bottom of the inning after Gregory stayed on task to tee up the three fly outs.

Friday night, the Mules posted a three-run lead in the second inning of the semi-final with three hits, a Colfax wild pitch and sacrifice.

Robinson settled down at the mound, and Colfax tied it with a run of three runs in the top of the fourth inning keyed by a two-run triple by Nate Akesson.

Colfax broke the 3-3 tie with two runs in the sixth off a walk, a passed ball and a sacrifice fly by Appel. Colfax added its last run in the seventh with a triple by Gregory and a single by Gingerich.

The Mules rapped two hits to score one run in the bottom of the sixth, but the comeback bid ended with a groundout hit.

Throwing his last game as a senior, Robinson struck out 10, walked one and allowed seven hits.

Coach Parrish told the team in the middle of the week that he intended to step down after heading Colfax baseball for 21 years. Parrish took five Colfax teams to state and won titles in 2002 and 2003 when the Bulldogs played in the A division.

Colfax finished 23-1 on the season with the lone loss to Colton in the first outing of the year. Topping the run with a title was accepted by coach Parrish as the ideal farewell gift.