Experience has taught that at any state championship tournament, expect the unexpected.  Anything can happen when the very best teams face off, putting it all on the line and playing at the highest level of competition.  Injuries happen, players buckle under pressure, while others rise to the occasion.  

The Malad Dragon baseball team came into state as the fourth seed, the least likely to rise to the top.  They were set to play the Orofino Maniacs, the #1 ranked team in the state, right off the bat Thursday, May 15. While most people credited Orofino with the win before the game even started because of their top ranking and season record, Malad never discounted the possibility of their own victory.

“It’s going to be a knock down, drag out sort of game,” Head Coach Jeff Snow accurately predicted in the days leading up the game.  The Dragons came out big in the top of the first inning, getting two runs on the board early.  

With two outs against them, Carter Blaisdell hit a ground ball to left field, getting the first base hit of the game.  Carter Carey followed with another single to left field, hitting on his first pitch.  Brady Showell, next in the lineup, battled it out at the plate, taking six pitches before doubling a well placed fly ball to left field.  The double bagger punched in the two runners on first and second to give Malad the lead.

The Dragons held the maniacs scoreless in the bottom of the inning, the defense working to make every play count.  Ky Willie forced the first out catching the hit in center field.  Shortstop Blaisdell took the second out, choosing the easier out at second base.  With a full count, the Orofino batter hit a ground ball to Showell just off of third base.  Scooping the ball off the bounce, Showell made the throw to Braxden Kaufman for the easy third out.

Unfortunately for the Dragons, getting base hits and converting them to runs didn’t come as easily as they did in the first inning.  The Orofino defense played a tough game, covering the outfield, catching attempts at stolen bases, and crashing the plate on bunt attempts.

While the MHS offense struggled to make any headway on the scoreboard, the defense continued to hold Orofino scoreless.  In the second inning, the Dragons strung together a seamless double play, getting the out at first and second in a matter of seconds.  Pitcher Brycen Howe finished off the inning by striking out the Maniac batter.  

Orofino picked up their offense as the game played on, taking the lead in the third inning with three scored runs.  But undeterred, Malad tightened up their fielding playing through the remainder of the game.  Coming in to relief pitch, Showell threw 12 pitchers on his first batter, winning the battle with a final pitch in the strike zone with the batter looking on.  Cale Briggs got the final out at second off the assist from Blaisdell.

Holdyn Higley made his way around the bases in the top of the fifth inning, Showell batting him in with a single hard ground ball to an open center field, to tie the score and make it anyone’s game.  

Playing into the sixth, Rydon Montgomery started the inning with a base hit on the first pitch, beating the ball to first base.  Easton Green advanced him to second base as he hit a sacrifice bunt just short of the Orofino pitcher.  With two outs and Montgomery on second, Briggs singled on a line drive.  Higley loaded the bases, getting walked on by the Maniacs.  Seeing his opportunity, Montgomery stole home on a wild pitch, sliding in across home plate just before getting tagged out, giving Malad the 4-3 lead.

The Dragons held their lead as they forced three quick outs, Showell striking out two batters and Howe getting the third out at first base.  Carey didn’t waste any time in the top of the seventh inning, hitting a triple bagger to right field.  Taking advantage of the defense, Carey scored again for the Dragons on a passed ball before Showell was walked on base.  As Willie was up to bat, Showell stole his way around to third.  On a wild pitch to Montgomery, he took his chance and scored a final run for Malad to bring the score to 6-3.

Collecting three outs, the MHS team took the field in the bottom of the seventh, determined to not give up a single run.   Showell easily took care of the first two batters, striking them out with minimal pitches.  But then the Maniacs were able to load the bases with two single hits and a walk on.  With two outs already, any out would hold Orofino scoreless and end the game.  Blaisdell, in at pitcher, threw a final pitch that the batter hit square in the middle, sending it to left field.  Just when it looked like it would drop short of Green in the field, he put on a burst of speed and lept ahead, catching the ball just inches from the ground to win the game.

The win advanced the Dragons to the semi-final game of the series against the Nampa Christian Trojans.  The Trojans pulled together a big inning in the second, putting five runs across the plate.  When another team might have considered it the writing on the wall, the Dragons played with grit, determination and hope.  

The third inning saw the MHS team close the gap with two runs of their own, followed by two more runs in the top of the fifth to make it a one point game.  But then the Nampa Christian offense got rolling again, stacking up another five runs to take the score to 10-4.  

Instead of giving up and giving in, the Dragons shook off the inning and countered with a five run inning of their own.  Showell started things off with a stellar triple to deep left field.  Willie punched him in as he hit a ground ball to shortstop territory.  Montgomery followed on base taking the hit by the pitch.  

The Trojans changed out pitchers due to the pitch count, choosing to save their ace for following games.  The new pitcher walked Green on to load the bases.  With a hitters count at 3-1, Briggs smacked another ground ball to left field to bat Willie in.  The bases loaded, Higley was walked on base, sending Montgomery in to bring the score to 7-10.  Despite another pitcher change, Nampa Christian walked Blaisdell, scoring another Dragon run as Green went home.  One 2-2 count, Carey singled to advance the runners on base, Briggs scoring a final run of the inning to bring Malad within one.

The comeback win required two things in the final inning- hold the Trojans scoreless for two innings and put up two MHS runs.  Like it was scripted, the Dragons played tight defense to get three outs at first base, Kaufman getting the assist from Carey, Blaisdell, and Higley.  

Montgomery got on base first in the top of the seventh inning, helped on base with an error by the second baseman as he scrambled to put the ball in play.  Kaufman followed on base, taking the pitch on the arm.  Green stepped up to the plate to hit a single ground ball to shortstop territory, batting Montgomery in to tie the game.  

The Dragons took a a walk and an out before loading the bases again.  With three balls and a foul to the bat, Green carefully watched the pitch to find an opening.  Sliding across home plate before the catcher could force the out, Green scored a final run to put Malad up 11-10.  Nampa Christian put an end to the offense, catching the Dragons in a double play.

With one final half inning to play, it was up to the defense to hold them.  Just like they did before, the MHS stacked three outs together while only allowing one runner on base to close out the game.  

Their ticket punched for the championship game played Saturday, May 17, the Dragons had to wait to see their next opponent.  In the Saturday morning game, Nampa Christian defeated the Marsing Huskies to go up against Malad for a second time.

The Dragons dominated the final game of the series, largely due to the six runs scored in the third inning.  The five run lead by Briggs, Blaisdell, Carey, Showell, and Willie was enough to hold off the Trojans as they attempted a comeback, scoring three unanswered runs in the fourth and fifth inning.  

Neither team scored through the remainder of the game, the defense dominating the field.  For Malad, first baseman Howe had three putouts in the last innings, Showell throwing two strikeouts, and Green catching a fly ball to the outfield.  As the Dragons were already ahead after the top of the inning, the defensive stop clinched the victory and state title.  The stands were electric with cheers from the MHS crowd as the players poured out of the dugout to celebrate the hard fought win.  

Senior Briggs led the team hitting with a .667 average, totaling 5 runs on 6 hits, walked on base 4 times, with 3 RBIs, and stole 2 bases.  Showell led from the mound for the Dragons, pitching 10 innings across three games, throwing a total of 166 pitches- 106 pitches in the championship game.  Blaisdell came in to relief pitch games one and two, pushing his opponents to the lowest batting average of the MHS pitchers at .211.

Covering first base, Howe led the fielding for Malad with putouts with 18, catcher Carey close behind with 17.  From the outfield, Green added 4 putouts, Willie 2 and Montgomery 2.  Showell tallied 7 assists, Blaisdell 6, and Higley with 5.

Reflecting back on the tournament games, Coach Snow couldn’t stop talking about how proud he was of what the team accomplished.  “We worked all season to peak at just the right time.  It was amazing to see the things we preached together all season finally come together in our final games.  After working towards a zero strikeout game, we finally accomplished it in that championship game.”

He continued to share not only how the team improved in their skill and ability to play the game, but also how they came together as a team.  He shared a critical point in the entire tournament when they had to make a decision who they would put on the mound to throw the remaining few innings of the game.  Choosing to leave Showell in, a play that would forfeit any additional chances for him to throw later in the tournament due to the pitch count, Coach Snow hoped they could battle through the next games down a key pitcher.

But after the players discussed it, Showell turned to his coach and said, “I trust Carter.  He can do it.”  Blaisdell stepped up to pitch the remainder of the opening game.  The senior may have only faced two batters and thrown only 6 pitches, but what he didn’t allow was any runs or hits to keep the Maniacs scoreless the final inning.

Coach Snow went on sharing highlights of his team with great outfield plays, base running and stealing, and stellar hitting, admitting what a bittersweet way to end the season. “We hate that its over,” he shared. ”We want to keep playing!  But what a way to end our first season coaching.  Some coaches go years trying to accomplish what we just did in the first year. 
So awesome!”