(Longview, WA) The Red Devils took the long way around but the bull pen and bats came out when needed to give Lower Columbia a record 15^th NWAC Baseball Championship with a 5-3 win over Tacoma on Monday, May 29 at Story Field.
 
GAME 1 vs Edmonds (5-25-23)
Lower Columbia kicked off the 2023 NWAC Championships vs the Edmonds Tritons. The Devils struck first in the bottom of the 1^st inning with and RBI single by Easton Amundson to score Justin Stransky.
Edmonds tied it up in the top of the 4^th with a wild pitch to put Tritons runner on third and a balk call to score the runner.
The Devils answered back in the 8^th plating two when Amundson singled again to score Tyler Peterson and Wren Cecil. The Devils defense held strong in the top of the 9^th to close it out with a 6-4-3 double play.
Devils collected the opening night win 3-1 with 7 hits and 1 error.
Michael Schwarz pitched 7 innings allowing 4 hits and 1 run on 9 K's and 0 walks
Jadon Williamson got the win in relief throwing 2 innings, giving up 2 hits with 2 k's and 0 walks
Amundson went 2 for 4 with 3 rbi's
 
GAME 2 vs Spokane (5-26-23)
Day two had the Devils facing East Region champion, Spokane Sasquatch
Spokane got it going when the NWAC MVP Garrett Gores doubled to score Jaxon Davis with 2 outs. LCC responded quickly capitalizing on a Bigfoot error putting Cayden Wotipka at second. Kyle Parkman stepped up with and rbi double to make it 1-1.
Top of 4^th Spokane took the 2-1 lead off a single and ground out, rbi.
Devils tied it back up in the bottom of the 8^th when once again Parkman smacked a double to score Stranksy.
Unfortunately, a couple of walks and a wild pitch on a third strike gave Spokane the go ahead run and LCC would be unable to get anything going in the 9^th.
Devils drop it 2-3 to Spokane and move in the elimination side of the bracket.
Noah Imboden went 4 innings with 6 hits, 2 runs, 2 walks and 4 strike outs
Joey Pearson went 4.2 innings of relief with 2 hits, 1 run, 2 walks, and 5 strike outs
Mac Elske threw 0.1 innings with a walk and strike out.
GAME 3 vs Bellevue (5-27-23)
With elimination now on the line the Red Devils needed to be as near perfect as they could. But, through the first six innings, they were unable to get anything going at the plate. Bellevue on the other hand, looked to be solid plating 3 runs in the 2^nd and 2 more in the 5^th taking a 5-0 lead into the 7^th inning.  
Top of the 7^th, Kyle Parkman and Wren Cecil are hit by a pitch back-to-back. Carson Hayes singles to lead the bases. Matthew Lewis is walked scoring Parkman and putting the Devils on the board. Tyler Peterson singles for the second run, Royce Vandine singles to make it 3-5. Easton Amundson hits a sacrifice fly to bring in run number 4. Then the big man, Cayden Wotipka, steps up and launches a 3 run bomb over the left field bullpen to give the Devils a 7-5 lead. LCC finishes the inning with 7 runs on 5 hits.
Bellevue's first batter, Cam Hoiland hits a solo home run to start off the bottom of the 7^th but that would it for Bellevue as the Devils pitching and defense holds the line to get the 7-6 win.
The win meant the Devils would now face the last unbeaten team in the Tournament, Tacoma.
Brayden Wells pitches 4 innings, with 5 strike outs, 2 walks, allowing 4 runs on 8 hits.
Camden Oram got the win in relief with 2.2 IP, with 3 strikeouts and 2 walks. Allowing 2 runs on 2 hits
Carson Kruckman earned the save with 2 IP, with 2 strikeouts and 1 walk, 0 hits and 0 runs.
Royce Vandine was 2 for 3 with an rbi and a walk
Carson Hayes went 2 for 4
Cayden Wotipka was 1 for 5 with 3 rbi (1 HR)
 
GAME 4 vs Tacoma (5-28-23)
Game four for the Devils was a familiar opponent, west region rival Tacoma.
This would be the fifth meeting for these two teams this season with series split 2-2. Tacoma had not lost a game yet in the Tournament and were already guaranteed a trip to the NWAC Championship game. Lower Columbia on the other hand had to win or be eliminated from the tournament.
The first two innings had a total of 3 runners make it on base. LCC put the first run on the board in the third when Royce Vandine singled to score Peterson, who had walked.
The Devils broke it open in the 4^th plating 3 runs on 3 hits and 1 Tacoma error to make it 4-0 LCC
Justin Stransky started of the 5^th inning for the Devils with his 7th home run of the season to make it 5-0. The Devils would add one more in the 5^th to go up 6-0.
Tacoma would try to make a game of it in the bottom of the 5^th capitalizing on a lead off walk and fielder choice rbi to score their first but only run of the game.
The Devils would add one more in the top of the 8^th when Matthew Lewis would be hit by a pitch and Tyler Peterson would single but a Tacoma throwing error would score Lewis to make it 7-1
Jase Schueller collects the win in relief with 5 inning pitched. Throwing 5 strike outs, 2 walks, with 2 hits and 0 runs.
Owen Luchies went 4 Innings with 2 strik outs 4 walks, allowing 1 run on 4 hits.
Royce Vandine went 2 for 5 with and rbi
Justin Stranky was 1 for 4 with and rbi (HR)
 
GAME 5 vs Lane (5-29-23)
The game 4 win meant that Lower Columbia would play Lane to see who goes into the championship game vs Tacoma.
The Red Devils got off to a quick start vs Lane putting two runs up in the first and 1 in the third to make it 3-1 LCC. But it was in the 6^th inning that Lower Columbia would throw the knock out punches to Lane.
Top of the 6^th
Stransky walks, Amundson pops up for out 1.
Wotipka reaches on fielder's choice that had Stransky out at second for out number two.
Parkman singles, wotipka reaches third on a Lane error. Cecil singles to score Wotipka (4-1). Camden Oram walkes to load the bases. Matthew Lewis singles to score Parkman, error on the throw by Lane scores Cecil (6-1). Wild Pitch scores Oram (7-1) moves Lewis to third. Tyler Peterson singles to score Lewis (8-1). Vandine walks, Stransky singles to score Peterson (9-1). Amundson walks to put Vandine on third and Stransky at second. Another wild pitch by Lane scores Vandine (10-1).
Lane finally gets the last out and is able to plate one in the bottom of the 6^th on a wild pitch to make it 10-2 LCC but that would be the end for Lane as the Devils hold on for the 10-2 win to advance to he Championship game.
Michael Schwarz would throw for 2.1 innings with 3 strike outs, 2 walks, allowing 1 run on 3 hits.
Mac Elske gets the win on 5.2 IP with 1 strike out and no walks, with 1 run on 3 hits.
Austin Sheldon finished it out with 1 IP throwing 1 strike out, 0 walks, 0 runs, and 1 hit.
Justin Stranksy went 4-4 with 2 rbi's and a walk
Kyle Parkman was 2 for 5
Tyler Peterson finished 2 for 4 with 1 rbi and a walk.
 
GAME 6 vs Tacoma – NWAC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME (5-29-23)
Lower Columbia didn't have time to bask in the win over Lane as they only had 50 minutes to prepare for the NWAC Championship match vs Tacoma. The Red Devils needed to a big day from their pitch staff and to play solid defense if they were to beat Tacoma for a 4 straight time.
It was a hard start for Devils has the Titans put up 2 runs in the bottom of the 1^st on 3 hits and an LCC error. With only 1 out and 2 runs on the board, Coach Lupinski made the early call to bring in Jadon Williamson from the pen. Jadon quickly got the last two outs on K's, but the damage was done as Tacoma had the early 2-0 lead.
That score would hold until the top of the 3^rd when the devils got a couple of walks combined with a sac bunt and an rbi single by Stransky to put a run on the board. Then Easton Amundson steps up to plate and unloads on a fast ball sending it into the advertising banners above the center field fence for his 10 home run of the season making it 4-2 LCC.
From there is was all Jadon Williamson with solid Devils defense at his back. Tacoma would manage 1 more run in the 7^th but LCC matched it in the bottom of the 8^th taking a 5-3 lead into the 9^th.
Bottom of the 9^th, Williamson finishes it out with another strike out, pop up to 3B, and a fly out to LF.
The Dog pile is on and the fireworks go off. Lower Columbia has won their 15^th Northwest Athletic Association Championship
Jadon Williamson earns the win with 8.2 IP throwing 14 K's, 2 walks, allowing 1 run on 7 hits.
Justin Stransky was 2 for 4 with an rbi
Easton Amundson was 1 for 4 with 3 rbi (HR)
 
Tournament MVP
Jadon Williamson, Lower Columbia

All-Tournament Team
Utility - Dane Woodcook, Tacoma
Utility - Cole Calnon, Lane
Catcher - Justin Stransky, Lower Columbia
Infield - Bryan Rojas, Lane
Infield - Garrett Gores, Spokane
Infield - Noah Juarez, Lane
Infield - Noah Fields, Tacoma
Infield - Tyler Peterson, Lower Columbia
Outfield - Jaxon Davis, Spokane
Outfield - Kyle Parkman, Lower Columbia
Outfield - Kamana Nahaku, Tacoma
Outfield - Titus Dimitru, Linn-Benton
Pitcher - Ryan Lynch, Bellevue
Pitcher - Michael Schwarz, Lower Columbia
Pitcher - Elijah Higginbottom, Tacoma
Pitcher - Chase Reynolds, Linn-Benton
Relief Pitcher - Dylan Watts, Tacoma
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