Retired left fielder Ricky Henderson once said, “If my uniform doesn’t get dirty, I haven’t done anything in the baseball game,” taking pride in a filthy jersey because it proved his work and dedication in each game.  If the banner and first place trophy weren’t enough, the dirt encrusted uniforms hanging on the Dragon baseball team at the end of the long, hard fought state tournament clearly illustrated their victorious finish of the 2023 baseball season. 

After a season of ups and downs, the Malad team found their groove and never looked back as they played through their post-season baseball games.  Heading into the district tournament, head coach Bo Clark told his team, “If we have a five game winning streak starting right now, we will be state champions.”  That thought fueled his team as they took one game at a time through their district bracket and into the state championship game on Saturday, May 20 in Orofino, Idaho.

 To someone simply looking at the team’s record, they might not be all that impressed.  But digging a little deeper, it's clear to see that the Dragons didn’t take the easy way through their 2023 season.  Instead of padding their schedule with easy wins, they took on schools, teams and programs that were bigger, more experienced and played at a higher level with the purpose of elevating their own game.  All along, Coach Clark knew that going up against these tough teams would prepare his team for the tough games that really mattered as they closed out the season.  

 Coming into the IHSAA 2A State Baseball tournament, the Malad Dragons never doubted that they could come out as champions.  They knew it wouldn’t be easy.  They knew that they would have to play at their very best as they took on the toughest teams of the state.  But they also knew they could do it.  

The Dragons opened their state tournament play facing off against the Kellogg Wildcats, the team that was least known coming into the tournament.  Needing to come out strong in their first game, Malad held nothing back as they went to bat in the top of the first inning.  Dax Maroney led the charge from the plate as he singled to left field on his first at bat.  Carter Blaisdell followed on base after a 4-0 count, with Jaden Ward getting on base after a bunt to shortstop.  Two plays later, with the bases loaded, the Kellogg pitcher threw a wild pitch, giving all the Malad runners a chance to steal and Maroney the first Dragon run of the game.  With runners now on second and third, Gaiden Combs hit a sacrifice fly ball to center field to bat in Blaisdell.  Ward, now on third, took advantage of another wild pitch to steal home for the third run of the inning.

 Malad found themselves scoreless in the second inning, but didn’t let that hold them back as they headed into the third inning.  Maroney, Blaisdell, Ward and Brady Showell made quick work of running up the score to end the inning 7-0.  Not only did Malad do well to get on base with solid hits, but they shrewdly made their way around the bases to make the most of their time on base.

The Dragons continued an impressive scoring run through the fourth and fifth innings, adding eight more runs over the final two innings to end the game 15-2.  Blaisdell led the team in batting, earning four runs on two hits and three at bats.  Showell, too, had a stellar game at the plate, earning two runs on two hits on four at bats with three RBIs.

Not knowing what to expect of the Wildcats, senior pitcher Stetson Higley started from the mound for the Dragons.  With the rules governing a pitchers count and necessary rest days, the coach staff was mindful in how they would use their pitchers over the three day tournament.  To allow Higley to pitch in a later game, Ryan Hubbard was called into relief pitch after the second inning.  Hubbard put in two innings as well before Cael Seamons was brought in to pitch, also in an attempt to leave Hubbard available for later games.  With so many games played in just a few days with so many pitches thrown, Coach Clark and his coaches had to be strategic as to where and when they put in their various pitchers.  Whatever the strategy was, it was spot on moving through the next two games.

Showell was brought in as pitcher to take on the Marsing Huskies in their semi-final game played Friday evening.  From the mound, Showell lasted all seven innings, allowing only two runs and two bases on balls.  The hurler struck out six of the 25 batters he faced, allowing zero runs and committing zero errors.  Showell’s powerful pitching game was crucial for the Malad defense to hold the Huskies scoreless throughout the game.  It was a sweet sound to hear the ball hit the catcher’s glove and the ump to yell, “STRIKE!” as Showell threw the final pitch of the game passed the batter’s swing to clench the shutout victory for the Dragons  

The matchup against Marsing was a defensive showdown as both teams made big plays to keep the other from making their way around the bases.  Catcher Combs was responsible for the first out of the game as he caught a runner on second base attempting to steal third between pitches when he passed the ball over to Higley at third base to tag the runner out.  Ryan Jensen played a crucial part of Malad’s defense at first base, putting nine batters out.

The Dragons commented that the Huskies defensive play was nearly flawless and “the game really just came down to who could get a base hit.”  Of their 29 appearances at the plate, Malad managed only seven hits on base, which speaks highly of Marsings pitching and fielding.  Ward managed the lone run for the Dragons in the sixth inning off of a double line drive hit to the left field.  With one out left in the inning, Ward made his way around third and home as Combs hit a single to left field, scoring as the ball was thrown to home plate in an attempt to thwart his score.  

With their defeat of Marsing, the only team that stood between the Dragons and the champion title were the Trojans of Nampa Christian, a team they had faced off in the championship round just two years earlier and had lost to, 3-4.  It’s no stretch of the imagination to think that many of Malad’s players had sweet revenge on their mind as they played that final game.

Hungering for the win over the Trojans and the state champion title, the Dragons came out big in the first inning and took a 2-0 lead.  Blaisdell was first on base, taking advantage of a dropped third strike.  Nampa Christian’s pitcher then sent Ward and Showell to first to load the bases for the Dragons.  Combs hit a single to the outfield to bat in Blaisdell for the first run of the game.  Ward added the second run of the innings as Higley singled to right field. 

The Trojans answered back with two runs of their own in the third inning to tie up the game at two.  The score held over the fourth and fifth innings and it wasn’t until the sixth inning that the intensity of the game ratcheted up.  Nampa Christian managed a player on base on the first pitch of the inning.  With a line drive to right field, the Trojans brought their runner on first home to take the lead from the Dragons.  With a watchful eye, Combs caught the runner from second attempting to steal third on the next play to put up the first out.  With his final pitches of the game and his high school career, Higley struck out the next Nampa Christian batter as he maxed out on pitches for the game.  Sophomore Brycen Howe was called in to relief pitch for the remainder of the game.  

If the Trojan’s coach was hoping for a chance to run up the score the incoming pitcher, he was sorely mistaken as Howe struck out the final batter of the inning.  Coach Clark commented that there was no fear, worry, or concern in his eyes as Howe took to the mound.  Nothing but pure confidence that he would shut down the Trojan offense.

Now down by two, the Dragons literally had to step up to the plate and make the magic happen as they moved into the bottom of the sixth.  With two out and two runners on second and third, Jensen hit a single line drive to center to bring in Combs and Chase Briggs in what his teammates called, “the biggest hit of his life.    

Moving into the final inning of the game, the Dragon defense had only to put down three quick outs and they would come out state champions.  With his curveball locked and loaded, Howe claimed the first out with a 1-3 count.  On the next play, the Trojan batter ground into a double play at second base.  Shortstop Maroney pitched the ball to Jensen, now at second base, for the forced out.  The batter attempted to steal second, but Maroney tagged him out for the final out of the inning and to take the win for Malad.

The Dragon team commented what an exciting victory it was after such intense, exciting, and emotional games.  They credit their triumph to their solid defense, sound pitching and strategic coaching.  In those moments when they were down and things got tough, they banded together to cheer each other on and move forward as a team.  Coach Clark proudly commented that this was indeed a team win, saying, “There wasn’t a single player that alone won the game.  Each player stepped up to play an important role.”