Durango High School was one out away – one strike away – from advancing to the state championship round.
For the second consecutive game, the Demons lost when their opponent came through with a walk-off single in the bottom of the seventh inning.
The DHS Demons (15-10) lost 7-6 to Green Mountain (18-7) in the Colorado High School Activities Association Class 4A State Championships on Friday in a final four elimination game played at All-Star Park in Lakewood.
The loss came six days after the Demons fell 1-0 to Niwot in the bottom of the seventh inning of a game that would’ve have guaranteed the Demons a place in the championship round.
“It is tough for us. The kids were out there battling,” DHS head coach Rob Coddington said. “We have a very gritty group of kids, and they fended off as many distractions as they could to get back to the final four for the second year in a row. That’s a good accomplishment.”
Leading 6-5 in the bottom of the seventh inning, the Demons got two quick outs before pitcher Casey Dunlap loaded the bases with a hit batsmen and a pair of walks. Justin Akiyama singled in the winning runs for Green Mountain.
Casey Dunlap was charged with the loss in four innings of work after coming on in relief of Lawrence Mayberry in the fourth inning. But Coddington said the walks were not necessarily Dunlap’s fault.
“We are ending on a sour note, because we feel like we actually won that game. There were two separate strikes called balls in the seventh inning that weren’t even close to being questionable. We don’t want to point fingers, and we know we could’ve done more throughout the game, but those were two gigantic calls we didn’t get in the seventh,” Coddington said. “It wasn’t even just in our dugout; even the other side said they knew it. That’s pretty tough, and everyone feels slighted.
“The sun has to be shining on you just right up here in this tournament.”
Tied 5-5 going into the sixth inning, the Demons were able to get one run across home plate on a fielder’s choice.
DHS scored five runs in the top of the third inning to take a 5-0 lead.
Blake Dunlap got the offense going with a two-run double that scored Mayberry and Jeremy Szura. DHS tacked on three more runs after coming through with six hits in the inning.
Green Mountain responded with one run in the bottom of the third inning.
When Casey Dunlap came on to relieve Mayberry in the fourth inning, he walked the first two batters he faced and hit the third batter with a pitch. A balk gave Green Mountain one run before they rallied with three more in the inning to tie the game 5-5.
Coddington credited his pitchers for adjusting on the fly, as Blake Dunlap was slated to be the team’s starter entering the game.
“Lawrence (Mayberry) pitched great. He wasn’t expecting to go because we had Blake ready to start. But the first pitch Blake threw in warm-ups, he felt something in his elbow,” Coddington said. “We were being cautious, so we went to Lawrence.”
Casey Dunlap settled into the game in the fifth inning and cruised until the bottom of the seventh inning.
“Casey grinded for four innings, and I thought he got us out of it, but (Green Mountain) got the calls,” Coddington said.
Coddington commended a group of nine seniors who helped DHS reach the final four two consecutive years. He hopes the younger players can help the team reach the same stage next season.
“These guys have played a lot of sports together and traveled together since they were young. It really worked, and I think they put DHS on the map as far as being competitive at state,” Coddington said. “I hope the underclassmen learn the lessons from them about how to play the game.
“This group has played hard through all the ups and downs, and I couldn’t be prouder of the guys.”
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
