Badgers walk away with crown

The Bonners Ferry High baseball team used a bases-loaded walk to survive a 12-inning marathon and capture the 3A District I championship Saturday at Timberlake H.S.

Hitless for eight innings, Bonners Ferry coupled two hits with an error to load the bases before Josh Hawks watched a 3-1 pitch sail outside, bringing in the deciding run in a 3-2 victory over defending district champion St. Maries at Timberlake High School.

The Intermountain League champion Badgers (19-7) advance to state, which begins Thursday at Treasure Valley Community College in Ontario, Ore. Bonners Ferry will face Kimberly (16-8-1) in a state opener at 3 p.m. PDT.

Third-seeded Priest River (12-10) claimed the second state berth. The Spartans, behind ace Brian Nelson, stopped second-seeded St. Maries 7-2. Priest River advanced to face the Lumberjacks after shutting out Timberlake 2-0 in a loser-out game.

Priest River will meet defending state champ Bear Lake (21-2) at 9 a.m.

Both starting pitchers were long gone by the time the district title game was decided. Bonners Ferry left-hander Chris James threw well more than 170 pitches and St. Maries righty Dalton Baker, who was named the league’s most valuable player, finished with about 130. By rule, no starting pitcher is allowed to work more than nine innings in a postseason game.

The Badgers brought in Ross Patterson (7-2), whom coach Tom Turpin was saving in case his team had to play a second game. Patterson allowed two walks and hit a batter in three innings, but held the Lumberjacks hitless.

Finally, in the 12th, after Patterson opened by striking out, the Badgers’ Josh Gatchell got the first hit by either team since the fifth. Casey Nelson then reached on an error and Kenny Swift singled to left to load the bases before Hawks walked.

“Just a timely hit and finally getting guys on base was big,” Turpin said. “We kept telling ourselves to be strong, to keep hitting and don’t give up. That’s what these kids have done all year.”

The Badgers took a 2-0 lead in the third inning. Baker hit Ryan Merrifield, who came around to score on Hawks’ two-out triple. Hawks then scored on a double by A.J. Bennett.

BF, which had three hits off Baker in the third, didn’t get another hit until the final inning.

St. Maries (13-12) scored a run in the fifth. Mykel Guidry reached on a walk and moved to third on a single by Logan Shelden before scoring on a wild pitch.

The Lumberjacks evened things at 2-all in the sixth. They had other opportunities, but they stranded 14 on base.

“We didn’t have the clutch hits,” St. Maries coach D.J. Eberlin said. “We should have scored a lot more. It’s hard to win ballgames when you leave that many on base.”

Eberlin praised James, but he also thought his players contributed to their woes.

“We helped him out a lot,” Eberlin said. “He threw a lot of strikes – and he left it up in the zone and we were going after it. He did a good job. He was throwing what we were swinging at.”

Baker thought the Lumberjacks succumbed to nerves, saying it was one of the worst hitting games his team has had this season.

“They’re a good team, but I think we were good enough to win,” Baker said.

Patterson said Baker was the reason his team struggled at the plate.

“Our bats weren’t working today because Dalton Baker is one heckuva pitcher,” Patterson said. “Then we had trouble adjusting to (relief pitcher Brett Arrhenius). But then we got it and look where we are. This is awesome.”

“The Spartans saved Nelson until the end, and it paid huge dividends against the Lumberjacks. He struck out 11.

Six of Priest River’s seven runs were unearned.

“Nelson pitched pretty good, but I thought we beat ourselves,” Eberlin said.

“The all-league team was announced. Joining Baker on the team were: Hawks, James, Patterson, Gatchell and A.J. Bennett of Bonners Ferry; Shelden and Marc Grubham of St. Maries; Nelson and Daniel Lucas of Priest River; and Noel Gonzales and Jason Edwards of Timberlake. Turpin was named coach of the year.