With their 8-5 win over Tucson High, the Canyon Del Oro baseball team advanced to their first state championship game since the 2009 season.
The game was tied 1-1 when the Dorados exploded for six runs in the fifth inning. With two runners on, Max Smith showed bunt, but after barely fouling his first attempt he laced a double down the right field line that scored a pair.
Two batters later Nick Ames came up to bat with a pair of runners on and he crushed a ball to right, to drive in two more.
The Badgers got two back in the fifth, but trailed 8-3 heading into the final half inning
Tucson High loaded the bases thanks to a pair of walks and a hit batsman, and added their fourth run of the game on a sacrifice fly to right. A single made it 8-5 and the next batter hit a hopper to short, which was mishandled, but scooped up quickly and fired to third, which forced the runner coming from second to get caught in a run-down. After a few steps he slipped and was tagged out to end the game.
Smith got the win, pitching 4 1/3 innings scattering five hits
The Dorados will play the winner of the Tucson High/Salpointe game on Tuesday night at Tempe Diablo Stadium. CDO has already beaten both opponents in the playoffs this season.
A full re-cap of the game will appear in the May 20 edition of the Explorer News.
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