EAGLE — Only two runs were scored in the first six innings between Eagle and Owyhee on Friday night. The final inning more than made up for the lack of scoring.
Owyhee struck first with four runs in the top of the inning. They took a 5-1 lead into the bottom of the seventh, poised to rebound from a loss to the Mustangs two days ago.
Until Eagle one-upped them with their own rally.
The Mustangs sent five runners across the plate in the seventh, winning 6-5 on a walk-off two-run single by Jimmy Flynn. His hit between the second and third baseman sent Bryson Shea, the winning run, home from second base.
“You couldn’t have dreamt it any better,” Flynn said. “It started in the beginning … pass the baton, get it to the next guy. Keep the line going. I knew they were going to throw me an offspeed, they were doing that all game. I sat back and rolled over it and beat it to the spot with the barrel.”
Eagle struggled to put baserunners in motion all night. They didn’t have one until the fifth inning and had three hits through six innings. But when it mattered most, they put runners on. The Mustangs capitalized on mistakes from Owyhee’s pitching staff.
Gage Haws began the inning on the mound for the Storm (6-2, 0-1 SIC). An infield and two walks loaded the bases with one out. Declan Ragan drew an RBI on a hit by pitch from Haws, making it 5-2 Storm.
Haws was pulled for Bryce Tam, who failed to record an out. He allowed a runner to score on a wild pitch and walked another batter. Eagle’s Caleb Zawadzki grounded out to first base, but a run scored on his behalf, cutting into the deficit 5-4. Two runners were in scoring position.
Then came Flynn’s hit.
“Having team at-bats, not worried about that, just trying to get on base,” Eagle head coach Scott Deck said. “That was the goal there, load the bases up and let’s see what can happen. Little by little we did and I think they started gaining confidence with it. Pitcher was struggling a little bit and that led to a few things and got our top of the order up.”
Few believed the Mustangs (9-1, 1-0) had a shot to pull off the comeback. Down four runs to the two-time defending state champions — with enough talent to make it three in a row this year — Eagle pulled off an improbable win.
“Our summer team, we had a nine-run comeback last inning,” Flynn said. “These boys knew what was up. They knew it was on from the beginning. It’s not unfamiliar to us.”
Zawadzki started the game on the mound for Eagle, allowing one run in five innings to go along with his RBI. In 14 innings pitched this season, he’s allowed two earned runs.
Owyhee starting pitcher Lucas Skinner carried a perfect game into the fifth inning. Haws gave the Storm the lead in the fifth with a two-out RBI single. The ball went up the middle and bounced off the glove of Eagle shortstop Adam Fulton. The deflection allowed just enough time for Ryder Cutlip to score from second base.
The Mustangs responded right away in the bottom of the fifth. Owyhee third baseman Keagan Kelly had an errant throw over the head off first baseman Drew Schumacher, allowing Brady Barowsky to reach, the first baserunner Eagle had all night. Two batters later, Carter Ditlove sent Barowsky home on an RBI single, tying the game at 1-1.
The season is still young, but Eagle made an early statement, picking off Owyhee twice in three days. The two met Wednesday — a 3-1 win for the Mustangs at Owyhee. Friday’s game was the first official conference game for both.
“I know they have a very good coaching staff and very good players and they’ve won two state championships in a row,” Deck said, who is in his first year as Eagle head coach. “That’s the pinnacle right now. That’s where we’d like to be one day. We’re going to keep our nose down and keep playing hard and do things the right way.”
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