In the biggest of games against the greatest of rivals, it’s seemingly the smallest, most obscure things that make all the difference.
So when Eaton’s standout senior cleanup batter Garrett Garrison popped a pitch high into the cloudy Greeley sky Saturday night, what initially appeared to be a routine fly ball suddenly became anything but routine.
It also quickly became anything but small and obscure.
As the forceful wind carried the ball slightly out of the reach of University left fielder Connor Danhoff and just eluded center fielder Gage Viken, what might have been a small thing just about any other time ultimately proved to be everything.
It carried the top-seeded Reds to a 2-0 win against the third-seeded Bulldogs in the third round of the winners’ bracket of the Class 3A state baseball tournament.
The sky-high bloop double with two outs in the bottom of the third scored Kade Gentry and Gunnar Duncan, providing every last bit of offense in the thrilling pitchers’ duel between these longtime rivals.
“That fly ball was hit a mile, and by no means was that a routine fly ball,” University coach Casey Miller said. “That was hit ‘different’ as they say. But it comes down to a lot of instances and a lot of plays today. And some plays could go one way or the other way. We just couldn’t seem to get them to go our way. … That’s baseball. But I’m very proud of what our guys did today.”
The game featured a nearly hour-and-a-half-long lightning delay but did nothing to disrupt either squad’s unwavering focus.
With the win, Eaton (27-0) — the three-time defending state champion — escaped the opening weekend of the double-elimination state tournament as the only tournament team without a loss. The Reds also extended their state-record win streak to 68 games, dating back to the 2022 season.
Eaton clinched a spot in the state finals at 10 a.m. this Saturday back at Butch Butler Field in Greeley, the same site as the classic third-round game between the Reds and the Bulldogs.
University (23-5) suffered its first loss of the tournament but very much remains in play to contend with Eaton for the title a week from now.
At 12:30 p.m. Friday in a semifinals game at Butch Butler, the Bulldogs will face the winner of a 10 a.m. Friday game between No. 4 Resurrection Christian (23-5) and No. 5 Coal Ridge (25-3).
The Reds and University have met in the state title game the past two years.
And if Saturday’s epic encounter is merely a preview of what’s to come, prep baseball enthusiasts should be clamoring for more from these two small-school heavyweights.
Both teams’ pitchers were electric Saturday.
Eaton senior Lucas Stone tossed 98 pitches, scattering six hits, while striking out 10 and walking one during a seven-inning, complete-game performance.
University senior Scott Thompson allowed two earned runs on five hits, striking out five and walking three on 94 pitches.
Ultimately, the only thing that truly distinguished one gem from the other was Garrison’s big bloop double in the third — hard luck for Thompson but well-deserved run support for Stone and an air-tight Eaton defense that absolutely refused to buckle against the constant pressure of a Bulldogs team that is also clearly championship-worthy.
“Lucas did a great job,” Reds coach Todd Hernandez said. “He was locked in. We had Garrett (Garrison) ready to pitch today if we needed him. But the way (Stone) was dealing, we were happy to let him finish. But, I also got to say, you’ve got to tip your cap to Scott Thompson. It was a really nice pitchers’ duel between both of those kids.
“They both gave championship efforts today.”
Though this was a game in which offense was tough to come by, University had its chances to counter the impact of Garrison’s big hit.
Even in the face of Stone’s elite performance on the mound, the Bulldogs advanced a runner into scoring position four times — just as many times as Eaton did.
But while the Reds reaped the full benefits of a major scoring opportunity, University wasn’t afforded such a break.
Much of the credit for that falls on the shoulders of Stone and the brick-wall defense that formed behind him.
“These guys just know how to compete,” Stone said of his teammates. “Knowing they’re behind me, it’s really easy to go out there and perform. It makes me realize that I can just go out there and just pound the strike zone.”
Even as Eaton’s defense made spectacular clutch play after spectacular clutch play, there was perhaps never a better example of how well the Reds supported Stone than the final play of the game.
With two outs and a runner on first base, University’s speedy senior leadoff batter Coel Croissant drilled a fly ball just inside the first-base foul line.
Had the ball dropped, it would have at least scored sophomore Joel Ramirez from first base and would have positioned Croissant to score — with senior slugger Dalton Yaste waiting on deck — if not scored Croissant outright.
Instead, Eaton sophomore right fielder Liam Whalen sprawled out for a web gem diving catch to secure the game for the Reds.
“Off the bat, I just read it and started going for it,” Whalen said. “I knew it was the end of the game. I had to lay out. … It was a great feeling.”
— Bobby Fernandez covers high school sports for the Greeley Tribune. Reach him at (970) 392-4478, by email at bfernandez@greeleytribune.com or on X @BobbyDFernandez.
