The Lower Columbia College baseball team captured the school's 13th NWAC baseball championship with a 7-5 victory over Yakima Valley on Monday May 28th.

It was another great memory on Memorial Day as the Devils won back-to-back titles for the first time since 1997.

Jared Akin got the victory in the final game as he settled down after a shaky start to pitch eight innings allowing three runs with five strikeouts.  Akin gave up two runs in the first and one in the second before he shut down the Yaks with six scoreless innings.  With two wins in the tournament and the championship game victory, Akin was named the tournament MVP.

The Devils found themselves down 3-0 before they got the offense going with five runs in the fateful third inning.

JT Strickler, Ricky Muzzy, Noah Andrews and Hunter Cook all provided RBI singles.

Sam Trend-Beacom blasted a solo homer in the sixth inning and the Devils added another insurance run in the 8th.  They would need them.

The Yaks came alive in the bottom of the ninth against Derek Downey, loading the bases with no outs.  Yakima Valley scored two runs and had the tying run on base when Justin Solt came on to get two ground outs.

Solt's final pitch was grounded to Cook and his throw to first ignited the Devils victorious pig pile.

Joining Akin on the NWAC All-Tournament team was Cook, Muzzy, Kyle Sandstrom, Andrews, Strickler, Yancy Bird and Solt.

Head coach Eric Lane becomes the first Red Devil to win an NWAC title as a player and a head coach.  He also has two others as an assistant coach.

Former Red Devil Bud Black gave a shout out to his alma mater at the end of his Colorado Rockies press conference.  Lane's Gonzaga teammate Marco Gonzalez tweeted congrats following his winning outing for the Mariners.  There were many former Red Devil players on hand to witness the latest championship in the storied program.

The LCC baseball championship capped off another incredible year for athletics at Lower Columbia.  All six Red Devil teams made the playoffs with softball taking second place and baseball winning it again.

The Devils will shooting for a three-peat in 2019.