Correction: An earlier version of this article stated the championship game is at 3 p.m. on Saturday. The game is at 4 p.m. on Saturday. The article has been updated to reflect the change.
The Juneau-Douglas High School baseball team is one step away from its first state championship since 2012.
The Crimson Bears defeated the Colony Knights 10-6 on Friday afternoon in the semifinals of the ASAA state baseball championships at Mulcahy Stadium in Anchorage.
Three JDHS seniors roped base hits within minutes of the game’s first pitch, and Luke Mallinger belted the first pitch he saw deep to left field. With two runners aboard, Mallinger made it around first base before it became clear the ball had left the park, allowing him to slow down and soak up his three-run home run.
The blast gave JDHS an early 4-0 lead.
“It was an inside pitch — I think it was actually the first pitch in the at-bat — and it just looked right and I swung,” Mallinger said. “I think the wind carried it a little bit, but yeah, kept on going and went out.”
#Dinger
Luke Mallinger with the first inning home run for the Crimson Bears, and
Juneau defeats @colonyhsknights 10-6. #StateBaseball #SemiFinals @ASAA_org @AKLegionBB pic.twitter.com/Wy3g5QMuLY— KTUU.com Sports (@KTUUSports) June 2, 2018
It was the second lopsided win of the tournament for the Crimson Bears, who knocked off North Pole 16-4 in five innings on Thursday. JDHS will contend for the state crown on Saturday at 4 p.m. against South Anchorage, which defeated Ketchikan 5-2.
Senior Kasey Watts threw three hitless innings and struck out four batters in the win. He will be available to throw in Saturday’s game.
Colony senior Jeremy Allen gave up six runs on eight hits and struck out three in three innings.
The Knights were fewer than 24 hours removed from a 9-8 come-from-behind victory over the higher-seeded Chugiak in the first round.
Colony coach Jordan Chadwell said it’s tough to say whether the game took an emotional toll on the team.
“We didn’t start off as strong as I’m sure we would’ve liked, but that was also partly due to Juneau’s pitching,” Chadwell said. “They pitched really well.”
After Donavin McCurley’s leadoff double sparked a 4-0 rally in the first inning, he put more pressure on the Knights in the second inning, hitting an RBI single with one out. Allen then walked Michael Cesar and gave up another RBI single to Watts that made it 6-0.
After a scoreless third inning, Jacob Dale, Cesar, Watts and Mallinger tacked on four more runs in the fourth.
“This is a state tournament, so every team here had to win something to get here,” Mallinger said. “So four runs (in the first inning) isn’t going to do it. … All these teams are good, we just have to be better, and we have to keep going and we can’t coast on anything and just keep on putting up runs.”
The score stood at 10-2 over the following two and a half innings. A no-out single by freshman Cody McLaughlin initiated a four-run rally for the Knights in the bottom of the seventh. JDHS’ Brock McCormick got Kaden Ketchum to fly out to center field for the final out of the game.
Chadwell said he was proud his team didn’t give up.
“They don’t ever have any quit in them,” he said. “I’m always happy to see that; that’s why we were able to pull one out last night. It was just a little too late at this point with Juneau — Juneau played a real good game.”
• Contact sports reporter Nolin Ainsworth at 523-2272 or nainsworth@juneauempire.com. Follow Empire Sports on Twitter at @akempiresports.
Juneau-Douglas High School senior Kasey Watts pitches against Colony High School in the ASAA state baseball championships on Friday at Mulcahy Stadium in Anchorage. (Courtesy Photo | Tami Wahto)
