The Pendleton dogpile was extra special after coming up short in six previous attempts at a state title (Jon Olson)

KEIZER – Pendleton / Nixyaawii put up crooked numbers in four innings in an awesome offensive display that saw the Buckaroos rout top-seeded Marist Catholic, 14-3, on a hot Saturday afternoon in a game called after six innings due to the mercy rule at the OSAA / OnPoint Community Credit Union 4A Baseball State Championships at Roto-Rooter Park in Keizer.

With the win, the Bucks finally took home the state title after six previous appearances in the championship game without a win, the last in 2023.

“It's unbelievable,” said second-year head coach Justin Speer. “This community is amazing. Look at them. They are baseball fanatics. To bring one home…it’s not about me; it’s about these kids and everyone who’s ever been our program or coached in our program. This one was for them today.”

Pendleton / Nixyaawii (23-8), which was seeded seventh in the state tournament, won the game in all phases. The Bucks banged out 16 hits – four for extra bases – and had runners on base in every inning but the third. And they made almost all the plays on defense behind ace righty Evan Lehnert, who went the distance, allowing just one earned run on four hits.

“We’ve been really confident in our team all year and our offense,” Speer said. “WE never once looked at ourselves as underdogs. We got rolling, got hot, and it was fun to be a part of.”

On the flip side, not much went right for Marist Catholic (25-4), which was trying to add a first baseball state title to the football championship it won in the fall. The Spartans fell victim to bloops and seeing-eye hits, often didn’t get out on plays that should have been made and couldn’t put away batters even in favorable counts.

“We didn’t execute and it snowballed,” said Marist head coach Noah Breslaw. “Honestly, it felt like we did not make an above-average play. There were opportunities to make some good to great plays and we didn’t seem to pull it off. They’re a good team; you have to make some above-average plays to keep them from scoring.”

Breslaw was mostly right, but he forgot about the TREMENDOUS, back-to-home-plate diving catch by CF Cash Andrus in the top of the third, which robbed Tugg McQuinn of at least extra bases and possibly an inside-the-park home run.

Pendleton / Nixyaaii set the tone for the game by scoring two in the top of the first inning and tacking one five more in the second.

The first-inning runs came courtesy of Colin Harrington, who punched a one-out single to right; and Colson Primus, who executed a perfect hit-and-run with a single through the vacated 6-hole to put runners on the corners for Vance Nelson, whose infield hit scored one. The second run came home on a wild pitch from Marist starter Gianni Lombardi.

The second inning started with Jacob Neistadt’s bloop single to right, which fell between three fielders; a four-pitch walk to Keegan Kline and a McQuinn sacrifice bunt that turned into a single when he beat out the throw. Lehnert was then hit by a pitch to drive in one.

“That’s our MO for this team,” Speer said. “We practice tremendously hard on being able to execute in a tight game, whether it’s small ball trying to create action or hitting balls in gaps. It’s a testament to how hard these guys work.”

Harrington followed with a double over the right fielder’s head to drove home two more and Mason Strong capped the scoring with a two-strike, two-out double to left center to plate two to make it 7-0 just 1.5 innings in.

Breslaw gathered his team before Marist hit in the bottom of the second and implored the Spartans to chip away at the robust lead. They did so by scoring two unearned runs in the second on two hits, including Jalen Smith’s RBI line drive to center; and added an earned run in the third on a walk, wild pitch, productive ground out and Lombardi sacrifice fly.

Down 7-3 after three, Marist Catholic was, indeed, chipping away.

“We kind of came out and started doing it,” Breslaw said. “That next four-run inning kind of took the wind right back out of the sails.”

Breslaw was referring to the top of the fourth, which started with a one-out infield single by Harrington, his third hit of the afternoon; a walk to Primus and a single by Nelson past third on a ball that probably should have been handled. Strong’s second two-run double of the game followed – a ball hit over the fielder’s head in right that could have been caught. Art Hill and Niestadt added an RBI each in the frame, extending the Pendleton / Nixyaawii lead to an 11-3 lead, almost insurmountable with Lehnert and his 0.74 ERA on the hill for the Bucks.

Speer said that he was surprised when Lehnert gave up an earned run in the third.

“He’s been so dominant all year,” Speer said. “Every time he goes out he gives us a chance to win.”

Pendleton / Nixyaawii added three more in the top of the sixth to increase the Bucks’ lead to 11 and put the game in peril of ending early. Hill, Kline and pinch hitter Anson Dressler all drove in runs with hits in the frame.

Given the opportunity to finish the game in six innings, Lehnert slammed the door shut, sandwiching two strike outs around a ground ball to second to clinch the long-coveted state title.

Lehnert struck out five in the game and dealt with only seven baserunners over his six innings of work.

“The fastball was there,” he said. “The slider was definitely there. The change up was difficult to locate because of how sticky it was. But I had solid defense behind me and even better bats at the plate.”

After Marist struck for those two unearned runs in the second, Lehnert said his mindset was to minimize the damage.

“It was next pitch from that moment forward,” he explained. “It happened to work out.”

The last strikeout, a backwards K on a dotted fastball; was bittersweet, Lehnert said, because it ended the game.

“It was the first one that Pendleton’s had and obviously my first one but it’s my last time with these boys,” he said. “We’ve been together since we were nine years old. That set the culture and was the reason we were able to be here today. I may have a tear in my eye but you can’t beat it. It’s a state championship!”

Strong led the Bucks’ offense with two doubles and four RBIs. Harrington and Nelson each had three hits and combined to score five from those spots in the lineup and drive in three (Connor Cook pinch ran for Nelson, stole two bases and scored twice). Niestadt had two hits and an RBI and Hill drove in two. Every player who came to the plate for Pendleton / Nixyaawii recorded at least one hit. It was an awesome, overwhelming offensive display.

Smith led Marist with two hits and an RBI. The Spartans lost in the state championship game for the second straight season.

Breslaw’s message to his team afterwards was simple: One game doesn’t define an incredible season.

“Today we were off and got beat by a really good team, but that doesn’t diminish the fact that we were 25-4,” he said.