Josh Kasner propels Algonac baseball to first-ever MHSAA state final

EAST LANSING — Every baseball team has talent at this stage of the MHSAA tournament. There's an ace on every pitching staff and a slugger in every lineup.

But few have a player like Josh Kasner, who checks both of those boxes.

And he's why Algonac is one of the last teams standing.

The Muskrats clawed past Lansing Catholic, 4-1, in a Division 3 state semifinal at McLane Baseball Stadium on Thursday.

Kasner dominated on the mound and at the plate for Algonac, which improved to 37-3 and advanced to Saturday's state final. It'll be the program's first-ever appearance in the title game.

"Right now, I'm still trying to soak it all in," Algonac coach Scott Thaler said. "Just look at all these parents (and fans). I just had to talk to them really quick because everybody wants to be part of this. Our community came down here — it's an amazing feeling."

"It feels good," said Kasner, who pitched all seven innings and tossed seven strikeouts. "But we know that we have one more. We kind of expected to be here. So it'll feel better after Saturday, hopefully."

Lansing Catholic drew first blood on an RBI single in the third inning. The Cougars then quickly loaded the bases with two outs. That's when Thaler walked out to the mound to speak with his starter.

"I don't think he was trusting his stuff," Thaler said. "I think he was trying to be too fine with his pitches. And we just said, 'Hey, you're our guy. Trust your stuff and just deal.' "

"(Coach Thaler) is really good," Kasner said. "He always comes out to the mound smiling and telling us to enjoy the moment. It's just a baseball game at the end of the day. So it calmed us all down."

Kasner avoided further damage by pitching out of the jam.

"That's pretty hard to do, especially when you're down 1-0," Kasner said. "But I know that my team is going to score runs off any team that we play. I knew if I only allowed one, we'd be fine and win this game."

In the inning's bottom half, the junior gave himself some insurance.

With two outs and a 1-2 count, he belted a three-run homer to left field. The ball cleared the wall and the foul pole by a few feet.

"I saw a fastball inside," Kasner said. "To be honest, I was sitting on a fastball — just an off-speed — and it was my pitch and I took it to the foul pole."

"I was just hoping it stayed fair," Thaler said. "I just said, 'Stay fair, stay fair.' But there are certain pings you hear off the bat and you know (it's going to leave the park). That was a shot. You could tell right away."

"Once I had that home run and we were up 3-1, I settled in," Kasner said. "And I knew I was going to be fine."

The righty then pitched a 1-2-3 inning in the fourth, which was punctuated by a strikeout that caught the batter looking.

With the lead now in hand, Algonac refused to relinquish it. Junior Matthew Rix tacked on another run in the fifth when he scored from third on a passed ball.

"Rix did a great job on the base paths," Thaler said. "He had two stolen bases and that was energized by him out in that nine spot."

Added Thaler: "I don't think the moment was too big for (our players). Which is good going into Saturday."

The Muskrats will face either Bridgman or Standish-Sterling in the state final at McLane Stadium. First pitch is 11:30 a.m.

Contact Brenden Welper at bwelper@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrendenWelper.

This article originally appeared on Port Huron Times Herald: Josh Kasner propels Algonac baseball to first-ever MHSAA state final