Prep baseball recap: Columbia wins first district title amid another postseason run
The Columbia High School baseball team just keeps finding ways to win.
On Tuesday, the Wildcats built an early lead and held on to upset defending 4A state champion Bishop Kelly — avenging a loss to the Knights in the state title game last season.
On Thursday, Columbia scored four runs in the eighth inning to knock off Middleton 5-1, snapping the Vikings’ 19-game winning streak and laying claim to the District Three championship for the first time in program history.
“Honestly, we’re just doing the little things and we play the game the right way,” Columbia coach Phil Diplock said. “We execute and play small ball because we know we have to, and the guys just don’t quit.”
Columbia (19-7) didn’t score a run Thursday until the seventh inning. The Wildcats tacked on four more runs in the first extra frame thanks to a pair of clutch base hits, both of which brought runners across the plate with two outs.
Catcher Isaac Antunes paced the Wildcats, going 4-for-5 with two RBIs, and he had what may have been the two biggest hits of the game.
The Wildcats trailed 1-0 in the top of the seventh when Antunes sent an RBI double to deep center, tying the score. He came up with two outs and runners on first and third in the eighth inning and dropped an RBI single into shallow right field to give Columbia its first lead of the night.
The Wildcats added to their lead in the eighth inning thanks to a double by Caden Campa and a single from Lewis Anderson.
Antunes, who held a celebratory fist high in the air as he ran to first following his hit, later scored on a fielding error, and he was immediately engulfed by a mob of teammates as he crossed home plate.
“It’s awesome to be part of this, especially with kids I’ve grown up playing baseball with since we were 9 years old,” Antunes said. “We’re all excited to hold the district plaque, but we understand that’s not the end goal. We want to win state, and we want to prove Columbia baseball is here.”
Columbia is in the midst of a second straight improbable postseason run.
Last season, the Wildcats had to get hot late in the year to overcome a 0-5 start, and they took the long road to the state tournament after losing the first game of the district tournament. They fought their way through the consolation bracket and won a play-in game to earn a spot in the state tournament before falling to Bishop Kelly in the championship.
Six sophomores started for Columbia last season, Diplock said, and they’re all back in uniform. The difference this year is the Wildcats aren’t limping into the state tournament as underdogs. They’re entering the fray as district champions.
“We’re the most confident we’ve ever been, even more than last year,” Antunes said. “The only thing that will make this season better is getting that state title.”
Pitcher Cam Wirtz started for Columbia on Thursday and gave up one hit, two walks and no runs in four innings. He was replaced in the fifth by Campa, who went the rest of the way, giving up three hits and one unearned run while striking out three batters.
Despite the loss, Middleton (24-3) will open the 4A state tournament next Thursday as the No. 1 seed, as determined by rankings from MaxPreps. His team may have seen its long winning streak snapped on Thursday, but Middleton baseball coach Bryan Swygart said that may not be a bad thing.
“Now we can get the talk of the winning streak out of way and just go play baseball,” Swygart said. “The biggest way we’re going to get better is through our mentality and understanding how to fight through tough stuff.”
The 4A state tournament will be held at Bishop Kelly.
BASEBALL ROUNDUP
Owyhee 5, Timberline 4: The Storm’s magical inaugural season continued with a third-place finish in the 5A District Three Tournament. Following an early 2-0 deficit, Cole Rohlmeier and Cade Walker led Owyhee (17-9) with four runs in the fourth inning to ultimately put the game away. The Storm and Wolves (20-4) both advance to next week’s 5A state tournament.
Borah 3, Skyview 2: The Lions (15-11) scored two runs in the sixth inning to keep their season alive and advance to the 5A state play-in game. Pitcher Korbin McCarney kept the Hawks in check, striking out seven and surrendering only four hits in the complete-game victory.
Bishop Kelly 7, Ridgevue 4: The defending state champs broke a 4-4 tie with three runs in the fifth inning to keep their season alive and advance to a 4A state play-in game Saturday. Jamison Ray led Bishop Kelly (21-4) with a 3-for-4 effort and an RBI.
Nampa Christian 3, Melba 0: Landon Cheney threw a two-hit shutout and struck out 10 as the Trojans (25-2) secured their fourth straight 2A District Three Tournament title. Leadoff hitter Zach Mullins got Nampa Christian on the board early, and Dane Bradshaw added a home run to keep the game out of reach. Both teams advance to the 2A state tournament.
North Star Charter 12, Rimrock 0: North Star Charter (17-2) continued its offensive firepower with 13 hits in the 1A District Three Tournament semifinals. Nine Huskies had a hit as they clinched a state tournament berth. Daniel Kormylo went 2-for-3 with two doubles and three RBIs.
This story was originally published May 12, 2022 at 11:18 PM.
