If the Linn-Benton baseball team wants to win the 2025 NWAC Championship, they’ll have to do so in the same fashion the team did in 2024: through the lower bracket of the tournament.
The Roadrunners fell to the lower bracket of the NWAC Baseball Championship after they were defeated 7-4 by Tacoma on Saturday night at David Story Field in Longview, Washington.
Things couldn’t have started much better for Linn-Benton against Tacoma; the Roadrunners raced out to an early 2-0 lead in the first inning after a pair of RBIs from first baseman Jake Dodge and catcher Aiden Hazen.
After four consecutive scoreless innings, the Roadrunners added to their lead again in the sixth and seventh innings with a solo home run from infielder Andrew Demianew and an RBI single from third baseman Conner Boyd.
However, in the bottom of the seventh inning, Tacoma began what would eventually be the start of a chaotic late-game comeback. After Tacoma shortstop Chase Cretti hit an RBI single in the bottom half of the inning, the Roadrunners’ lead fell to 4-1.
In the bottom of the eighth inning and down two outs, Tacoma suddenly came alive thanks to their efficient hitting and patience. After Emmett Weichbrodt hit a single, Tacoma loaded the bases on two consecutive walks.
Things went from bad to worse for the Roadrunners; with the bases loaded, the next two Tacoma batters were hit by pitches, bringing in two runs for the Titans.
With the deficit down to one and the momentum in their favor, Tacoma finally snatched the lead on a crucial RBI triple from Cretti, putting the Titans up 6-4. Now in the lead, the Titans fortified their advantage once more before the end of the inning on a wild pitch that allowed Cretti to score, upping the Tacoma lead to 7-4.
The Roadrunners would get one more shot at it in the top of the ninth, but the Titans would not let their advantage slip, holding on to take the match 7-4. The result meant that Linn-Benton will now have to win their next three do-or-die games to be champions of the NWAC conference again.
The Roadrunners’ potential route to the title begins with a lower-bracket elimination match against fellow NWAC South-Region side Umpqua on Sunday. If Umpqua wins, the Roadrunners are out, but if Linn-Benton wins, the team goes on to the championship on Monday with a potential of two matches against either Spokane or Tacoma.
If the Roadrunners advance to the championship game on Monday, Linn-Benton will have to win back-to-back games against whichever side they face to win the title. The route may seem challenging, but the Roadrunners had to go almost the same way during their journey to the 2024 NWAC title.
In 2024, Linn-Benton lost in the same round against Tacoma and worked their way up through the lower bracket, winning the championship by defeating the same Tacoma side in back-to-back games.
The Roadrunners will hope for the same storyline again, but the team must first take care of business against their most formidable divisional foes in Umpqua. Linn-Benton’s match against Umpqua is scheduled for today at noon at David Story Field.
