Cade Shumard's grand slam fuels Saguaro's rout of Sahuarita on way to 4A baseball final
Cade Shumard is more than a pitching ace. He can hit.
On Thursday night, he did both.
Shumard, a junior left-hander who has college interest from Arizona State and UC Santa Barbara, gave up just two hits in four innings and blasted a second-inning grand slam that broke open the game and led to a 16-1, five-inning, run-rule semifinal win over Sahuarita at Tempe Diablo Stadium.
Saguaro (25-8) had to beat Sahuarita on back-to-back nights in order to reach the 4A state championship game, after losing in run-rule fashion to Sahuarita 11-1 on May 3 during this double-elimination tournament.
Second-seed Saguaro seeks its first state championship on Monday night at 7 at Diablo since capturing back-to-back titles in 2010 and 2011. The Sabercats will take on No. 5 Oro Valley Canyon del Oro in the final. CDO didn't need to win on back-to-back nights to get there. The Dorados took care of business on Wednesday with a nine-inning, 6-5 win over Prescott Valley Bradshaw Mountain.
CDO (20-10) will be trying to go back-to-back in 4A.
"We were able to turn that loser's bracket into something that really worked to our advantage," Saguaro coach Joe Muecke said. "You had a team that didn't have a hiccup yet and we kind of had ours.
"We know CDO is a good club. They've definitely strong. They've got a good pitcher in (Lucas) Casey (who is 10-1). He's thrown about 76 innings for them. We know who we will probably see. It's going to be good. We're ready for that challenge."
Shumard has been clutch in the playoffs, especially on the mound. This was his third playoff win in a little more than a week.
He pitched only four innings, giving up two hits and striking out five. His grand slam in the second basically put the Mustangs away with the way he was pitching.
Sophomore left-hander Cam Caminiti pitched the fifth for Saguaro, striking out two. He went 1 for 2 with two walks, an RBI and two runs. Donovan Davis went 3 for 3 with two RBI and three runs.
"(Shumard) has stepped up all year," Muecke said. "He's really been our No. 1 on the mound. Offensively, hitting behind Caminiti helps. Caminiti doesn't get pitched to a lot. He's closer to 40 (RBI) now. That says a lot. Caminiti is on the base and he's putting good swings on the ball. He's gone from being a one-dimensional kind of pitcher to a really strong two-way player. It's been fun to watch."
More: Arizona high school sports titles on the line in baseball, softball, track and boys volleyball
Horizon eliminated in 5A
At Hohokam Stadium in Mesa, Phoenix Horizon saw its season end in an 8-5 loss to No. 1 Tucson Catalina Foothills.
Catalina Foothills (27-2-1) plays No. 2 Queen Creek Casteel on Tuesday at 4 p.m., for the 5A state championship.
To suggest human-interest story ideas and other news, reach Obert atrichard.obert@arizonarepublic.com or 602-316-8827. Follow him on Twitter@azc_obert
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Saguaro baseball reaches 4A final behind Cade Shumard's grand slam
