The LCC Baseball squad got within 90 feet of thier 9th NWAACC Championship, but it wasn't to be. The Edmonds Tritons defended thier title by holding off the stubborn Red Devils 5-3 in 12 innings. LCC had forced the second game with a 4-3 victory over Edmonds. LCC had a chance to win the title in the 10th inning with one out and the bases loaded, but a double play ended the rally.
LCC opened the NWAACC's in Pasco with a 4-0 loss to Edmonds. Instead of crying about it, the Devils got tough and won three straight games to get to championship Monday. LCC shuout Spokane 6-0, beat Bellevue 4-3 and then eliminated host Columbia Basin 6-1. That set up the showdown between Edmonds and LCC. The Tritons were undefeated in the tourney until they faced the Devils.
Lower Columbia had plenty of stars in the NWAACC Tourney. Kyle Aselton had a four-hit, 14 strikeout performance against Spokane. Jon McCaslin pitched with a blazing fastball and the guts to take the ball on back-to-back days and back-to-back games. Andy Myette was effective on the hill. Ryan Johnson had a big championship day with his bat and his glove. Jason Pohl was amond the tourney leaders in hits and it was his big two-run double in the 8th inning of the final game that tied up the score and gave the Devils a chance. Jacob Ross showed he can hit in the clutch. Nate Cundiff showed off his bat and his arm. David Walton was gritty at the plate and he made some great plays in the field. Jason Krohn was solid at shortstop and provided big hits that sparked rallies. Will Brindza had a couple of huge games at the plate. Brandon Gottier caught all six games and was a rock behind the dish. Jesse Spellmeyer had an amazing outing against CBC. There were stars a plenty for the Red Devils. It was a great team effort that fell just short.
The Devils trip to the tourney was an NWAACC record 32nd appearance and it was 17th time they played in the championship game, winning eight of them.