LC can’t rally to repeat

BOISE – This time, the Lake City High baseball team couldn’t muster a final rally.

The Timberwolves needed a rally a year ago to put themselves in position to win the State 5A championship. They needed one Saturday, but Boise’s pitchers shut down the Timberwolves as the Braves knocked off the defending champs 6-4 at Borah High School’s Wigle Field.

“We just couldn’t quite get it going,” said LC senior shortstop Trent Bridges, whose two-run homer in the fifth accounted for the final scoring. “I don’t know how to say it, but we had it for a little bit – had a little flow. We just never had quite enough to get over the hill, I guess. It was a fun year, though. It was a good year.”

Timberline handled Lewiston 11-1 in five innings for third place, and Twin Falls edged Eagle 5-4 for fourth.

LC finished the season at 19-7. Five of the T-Wolves’ losses were by a run, one was by two runs and the other by four.

Boise senior right-handed pitcher Jake Crawford (5-0), a starter as a sophomore and junior who was used mainly in relief on a deep staff this season, kept the steady-hitting T-Wolves off balance. Most of the time, he threw a first-pitch strike.

LC’s pitching was quite the opposite. Boise’s leadoff hitters reached base each of the first three innings by walk, and in the fourth by a single. Zach Clanton, who went the distance in LC’s opener on Thursday, came in to open the fifth and shut down the Braves (28-2) to give LC a chance for late-inning heroics.

Nothing materialized.

“There were a lot of expectations this year,” Bridges said. “In my opinion, we didn’t quite fulfill them. Two runs … three runs short of doing it. What can you say? It was still second place, so it was still a good year. We’ll take it.”

LC tied it at 2-2 in the top of the third when senior Kyle Johnson stole second and followed by stealing third. He advanced home when the Boise catcher threw the ball up the left-field line.

But Boise took the lead back for good in the bottom of the inning with three runs.

LC coach Cory Bridges praised Crawford’s pitching.

“He got strike one with a curveball quite often,” Cory Bridges said. “Most kids don’t want to jump on a curveball first pitch. So he got ahead in the count – exactly opposite of what we did. We could never get ahead in the count, and they capitalized on it. We had some opportunities to score runs with a hit here or a hit there. It just wasn’t meant to be tonight.”

LC had a final chance in the top of the seventh with the top of its lineup scheduled to bat. But the T-Wolves couldn’t manufacture anything.

“The thing we do so well – and we preached doing well at – is pitching and defense. They kind of let us down a little,” Cory Bridges said. “I wish we could have given a better effort there because I think we’d still be playing. But that’s a great ballclub (Boise). You don’t go (28-2) in (the Boise) conference without having ability.”

For most of LC’s 13 seniors, it was the last time they will play together. Six of them go back to Little League days and a magical summer in 2002 when they were three outs from advancing to the World Series.

“It was a helluva ride. It was a blast,” Cory Bridges said. “I love every one of them.”

By having a son in the mix, Cory Bridges goes as far back with LC’s seniors as they do.

“It’s a tremendous group,” he said. “You can tell by their emotions right now. They were a pleasure to coach. I don’t know if there’s many programs that can feel and say what I’m saying about this bunch right now. I’d be very surprised if anybody could have the same feelings and be able to say the same things that I can say about these kids. I think we’re well respected. We do it right. We play baseball the way baseball is designed to be played and these kids do a helluva job at it.”

State 4A

Lakeland edged Rigby 9-8 to capture fourth place. Lakeland finishes the season 12-10.