(Brock Laue/CHSAANow.com)
GREELEY — Chase Allen was at his first state tournament for Colorado Academy baseball. Judging by his build and performance, one may have mistaken him for a senior.
The first-year took the mound against Peak to Peak in the Class 3A tournament and delivered a gem of a pitching performance with five shutout innings and only three hits given up.
The Mustangs swung hot bats as well, eventually pulling away for a 10-0 mercy rule win over the Pumas in five innings.
As a result, Colorado Academy improved to 2-0 at Butch Butler Field in the Class 3A state tournament. They also defeated Lamar 7-6 on Tuesday morning.
They are looking for state championship No. 1 in baseball. Their prospects appear bright after a pair of victories.
“I’ve never been on this big of a stage,” Allen said. “I’ve played travel ball all my life, but coming out on this stage and representing my school is huge. I haven’t been pitching that much. Coming out here and being as efficient as I was, that’s great. I was very proud.”
A run by Geoff Farmer in the bottom of the third put the Mustangs up 1-0. They tacked on insurance runs in the fourth after a walk and a single by Bo Dodge put two runners on base. A wild pitch led to a run by Farmer.
Then, it was a flood of RBI singles. Ben Cole stepped up with an RBI single to drive in another run. Wyatt Westfall came through with an RBI single of his own. Then, Isaac Corson drove in two more runs with a single. The lead was 6-0 in favor of Colorado Academy in the fourth frame.
The Mustangs tallied five runs on six hits in the fourth inning.
“I don’t think CA has had a team go this far in a long time, if ever, so doing this is a lot of fun,” the freshman said.
Colorado Academy will face Valley at 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday at Butch Butler. The Vikings beat Faith Christian 2-1, and Eaton 15-12.
The winner of that game will improve to 3-0 and be the last unbeaten team in the 3A bracket.
Peak to Peak, another team that has yet to claim a baseball crown, is still alive in the tournament, as well. They will face the winner of Salida or Faith Christian at 12:30 at Butch Butler tomorrow.
Eaton will face the winner of Lamar and La Junta.