It’s reigning cats and dogs for title game
The powerhouse Cougars and Lobos will claw at each other for the trophy.
And so we are left with two schools to decide the Class 5A Championship Series winner Sunday.
One is Aurora’s Cherokee Trail, which has taken over as Colorado’s second-largest school, owns a runner-up (2006) and championship finish (2007) in 4A, and has played fabulous baseball since mid-April. The other is an established favorite, Fort Collins’ Rocky Mountain, which has won five titles since 2007 and made it crystal clear there is big-school power beyond the Denver area.
On Saturday at All-City Field, Cherokee Trail beat Mullen 9-2 in pretty much the same manner it has displayed after beginning the season 3-3. The Cougars, now 21-4, get timely hitting. They get steady defense. They run the bases well. And they have gotten solid pitching, notably from No. 3 starter Keven MacKintosh, a senior who has won the past two playoff games and allowed top lefties Jerome Bohannon and Conner Nantkes to be ready for two possible games Sunday (the Cougars haven’t lost in the double-elimination format).
Against Mullen, which finished 18-7, Cherokee Trail’s third lefthander went the distance, gave up only seven hits and struck out seven.
“I was throwing everything — curveball, slider, fastball, everything was working,” MacKintosh said.
“He just found the zone,” coach Allan Dyer said. “He just challenged them.”
At the plate, every Cougars starter reached base and eight of the nine drove in a run.
Cherokee Trail, seeded No. 13 in the new RPI system, added runs on a suicide squeeze and sacrifice fly, and put the game away with a five-run seventh inning.
As for Rocky Mountain (18-7), its 17-4 smashing of Cherry Creek in five innings was impressive. The Lobos were a low No. 17 seed and took some hits, but their playoff dominance continues.
After taking a 3-0 lead in the first inning, they erupted for a 10run second. They sent 15 batters to the plate, had six hits, walked three times, had a hit batter, benefited from an error and got so far ahead that coach Scott Bullock yanked starting pitcher Austin Allarid to save his 41 pitches in case he needs them Sunday.
Lobos junior Jadon Uhrich, a transfer from crosstown Fossil Ridge, singled, doubled and added a sacrifice fly.
“We’re excited,” he said. “Coming from another program, I did not expect to be in this position. This has always been my dream and everybody’s dream. Now we’re here, and it’s awesome.”
Said Bullock: “There’s some satisfaction, and I’m proud of these guys.”
The Bruins were dominated, finished 17-8 and had no excuses. “Sometimes you’re diamonds, sometimes you’re coal,” coach Marc Johnson said.
Kadin Breeze drove home three runs for the Lobos.
Cherokee Trail handed Rocky Mountain a 7-0 defeat last weekend in the series. Results, box scores Neil H. Devlin: ndevlin@ denverpost.com or @neildevlin