AURORA | Though it got off to a shaky start — twice — the Grandview baseball team worked its way through Saturday’s Class 5A District 8 tournament and into the 5A Championship Series.
The sixth-seeded Wolves faced two-run deficits after just 1/2 inning in each of its two games, the opener against No. 27 Douglas County and the championship game against No. 11 Columbine, but got back on track in both games to reach the double-elimination Championship Series for the third time in the past four years.
Coach Scott Henry’s Grandview team got the timely rallies that have characterized its season in both a 4-3 win over Douglas County — a four-run outburst in the fourth inning — and five runs over a two-inning span on its way to a 5-2 win over Columbine in the final.
The Wolves joined three other Centennial League teams — Cherokee Trail, Mullen and Cherry Creek — among the eight teams in the Championship Series, which opens May 20.
In the district tournament, Henry saw his defense get off to a tough start, as errors helped the Huskies put up two unearned runs against starting pitcher Grant Schroeder. Grandview faced that two-run deficit as it came up in the bottom of the fourth inning until it finally got to Huskies starter Javier Rodriguez.
Seniors Travis Parker and Zach Sundine each had two-run singles in the Wolves’ four-run rally and the pair combined for five of Grandview’s seven hits in the contest.
Schroeder allowed a single run in the fifth and protected the one-run lead through the sixth before Henry turned to senior Andrew Coverly. The right-hander gave up a hard-hit single off shortstop Tyler Smith’s glove to open the inning and the Huskies pushed the tying run to third base with a sacrifice and ground out.
Coverly ended the game with a strikeout.
Senior Cade Crader started against Columbine and also yielded two runs in the opening frame to the Rebels, but the deficit didn’t last long as the Wolves reached Rebels starter Taylor Dye for three runs in the second inning and two more in the third to get all the runs it needed.
With two outs in the second inning, Garrett Gipson and Hunter Mclaran had back-to-back singles to bring up Sundine, who knocked in a run with a single. Smith follow with a two-run double to put the Wolves in front.
Parker and Mclaran drove in runs with base hits in the third inning to expand the lead and Crader made it hold up, as he finished a complete game six-hitter.
Coverly helped out Crader with some nice defensive plays at third base, including a 5-3 double play to end the game with DJ Wilson at the plate representing the tying run.
Full Class 5A district baseball tournament results, here.
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at 303-750-7555 or sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter: @aurorasports. FB: Aurora Prep Sentinel
2016 CLASS 5A DISTRICT 8 BASEBALL
May 14 at Grandview High School
Championship game
(6) GRANDVIEW 5, (11) COLUMBINE 2
Score by innings (r-h-e):
Columbine 200 000 0 — 2 6 2
Grandview 032 000 x — 5 8 0
WP — Grandview: Cade Crader (7 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K). Grandview hitting: Tyler Smith 2-3, 2B, 2 RBI; Hunter Mclaran 2-3, RBI, run; Zach Sundine 2-4, RBI, run; Travis Parker 1-3, RBI; Tyson Hays 1-2, 2B; Andrew Coverly 1-3; Garrett Gipson 1-3, run; Gunnar Lamphere 0-0, run
First round
(6) GRANDVIEW 4, (27) DOUGLAS COUNTY 3
Score by innings (r-h-e):
Douglas Co. 200 010 0 — 3 5 0
Grandview 000 400 x — 4 7 6
WP — Grandview: Grant Schroeder (6 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K). Save — Grandview: Andrew Coverly (1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K). Grandview hitting: Travis Parker 3-3, 2 RBI, run; Zach Sundine 2-4, 2 RBI; Andrew Coverly 1-3; Braden Sullivan 1-3, run; Garrett Gipson 0-2 run; Jarod Graham 0-0, run
