SLIDE SHOW BASEBALL: Tahoma beats Issaquah 7-6 in nine innings to punch ticket to Safeco

By Dennis Box • May 24, 2009 2:11 am
Tahoma's Heyden Johnson laced a base hit up the middle to bring in Zach Aaker
Tahoma's Heyden Johnson laced a base hit up the middle to bring in Zach Aaker

The baseball gods are smiling today. The game has never been better played.

Tahoma High and the Issaquah Eagles battled for nine innings Saturday at Heidelberg Park in Tacoma with the Bears winning 7-6, punching a ticket to the final four in the state tournament at Safeco Field.

Tahoma will play Puyallup at 7 p.m. Friday, May 29 at Safeco.

The game was best summed up by Issaquah coach Rob Reese. “It was an epic game,” Reese said. “You can’t get any better baseball than this.”

Both Tahoma and Issaquah were playing the second game of the day. In the first round of the tournament, Tahoma beat Marysville-Pilchuck 8-1 with Bears’ ace Chris Marangon throwing nine Ks and walking one.

Taylor Smart took the second pitch of the game out of the yard. It was the junior shortstop’s first home run in high-school ball.

Issaquah beat South Kitsap 7-1, which set up the quarterfinal showdown.

Spencer Hobson took the hill for the Bears against Issaquah and pitched into the top of the fifth. He was relieved by Justin Cloud, followed by Zach Aaker and finally Jerad Casper in the eighth, who earned the win.

Ethan Kalin took the mound for Issaquah. Austin O’Neil relieved and Mike Paulson came in picking up the loss for the Eagles.

Tahoma went up 3-0 in the first and held a 6-2 lead into the fourth.

The Bears defense earned high marks keeping Issaquah in check early. In the third Cloud made a diving catch in right to stop a rally.

In the top of the fifth Issaquah turned up the pressure again, but a classic 6-4-3 double play started by Smart kept the damage to one run.

But the young Eagles played a one run at a time game of grit and crawled back, tying the frames up at 6-6 in the seventh.

For the next two innings the Bears coach Russ Hayden said both teams were “one pitch away from winning or losing.”

In the eighth it looked like Kyle Conwell might end it with a hit to center, but a diving catch by Issaquah’s Spencer Rogers turned the opportunity into a break for the Eagles.

In the bottom of the ninth, with Aaker on, Heyden Johnson came to the plate with a shot to win the game.

“It was a one-one count and I knew he had to come with a fastball,” Johnson said.

Paulson did and Johnson laced the ball up the middle and Aaker crossed the plate for the victory dance.