LAKEWOOD | The Cherokee Trail baseball team’s hope to return to the final week of the Class 5A Championship Series for a third straight season came to an end in extra innings Saturday.
The 11th-seeded Cougars — who made the semifinals in 2022 and the state championship game last season — ran into the outstanding pitching of eighth-seeded Prairie View, which held up over nine innings at All-Star Park and allowed the ThunderHawks to prevail 5-2.
Cherokee Trail scored twice in the fourth inning to take the lead on a two-run single by senior Logan Reid — which brought home seniors Braedan Reichert and Akoi Burton — but Prairie View starter Romani Perez kept it off the board for the next five innings until his team scored three times in the top of the ninth and held on.
The ThunderHawks claimed a spot in the Final Four of the 5A Championship Series and will face 16th-seeded Grandview in a 10 a.m. contest May 31 at All-Star Park. No. 2 Regis Jesuit and No. 5 Cherry Creek round out the four remaining teams.
Coach Jon DiGiorgio’s Cherokee Trail team, which opened the Championship Series with a 3-2 win over Horizon before a 3-0 loss to Regis Jesuit, finished the season 19-9.
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter/X: @aurorasports. IG: Sentinel Prep Sports
2024 CLASS 5A BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES
Elimination bracket: (8) PRAIRIE VIEW 5, (11) CHEROKEE TRAIL 2 (9 INN.)
Score by innings (r-h-e):
Prairie View 000 020 003 — 5 8 1
Cherokee Trail 000 200 000 — 2 4 1