Thunderstruck: Lyons baseball falls to Denver Christian in 2A tourney
May 25—In the days leading up to its Class 2A state semifinal against No. 2 Denver Christian, 12th-seeded Lyons baseball had been enjoying its role as spoiler in one of the state's smaller classifications.
First, the Lions upset No. 5 Holyoke at its own regional, then carried that energy into back-to-back victories over No. 13 Swink and No. 1 Limon on the opening day of the state tournament in Pueblo. On Saturday, they finally met a challenge they couldn't overcome.
The Thunder trailed through the first 5 1/2 innings, then found their spark in the bottom of the sixth. They turned a one-run deficit into a four-run advantage, thanks to a pair of base hits and a couple of errors. In doing so, they sent the Lions straight to the double-elimination consolation bracket with a 6-2 victory.
"We got the first out, and a couple of guys were on," Lyons head coach Kale Olson said. "We were in a double play situation. I think we made a mental error, a little bit of physical error, and then things kind of compounded from there."
Freshman lefty Zack LaCrosse threw six strong innings for the Lions, striking out four while only allowing one earned run. He's been just one ingredient in the special sauce that the team has concocted from the mound this season, alongside fellow pitchers Wyatt Waters and Jake LaCrosse.
"You're looking at it from a chess match standpoint," Olson said. "Knowing that we have three starters gives us a really good shot, just from getting more strikeouts, guys being able to throw complete games with the pitch count rules. We knew we were deep at pitching."
Their recent success, Olson said, boiled down to shedding the stress and enjoying the game, no matter how many curveballs it may throw at them.
Denver Christian set itself up for a state championship date next Saturday, as the rest of the remaining field battles for the second spot in the title game. Lyons, now, will prepare to face off with the winner of Limon vs. No. 8 Buena Vista at 12:30 p.m. on Friday.
No matter what happens next weekend, the Lions can rest easy knowing they're already the best team in school history.
"We're focusing on the bigger picture," Olson said. "We have never been this far as a team, and that's something we get to do. It's a lot to be proud of. We have a lot of confidence going into next weekend because I think, as a team, we realized we are really good. It'll be fun to see what team can show up next weekend.
"I think the boys felt a little surprised when they started winning these games. They have the underdog mentality, and I think they realized over the course of the last couple of weeks that they belong."
