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OREM — Thanks to a 7-6 loss to Skyridge in Friday's opening game of the 6A state championship series, American Fork knew exactly what it had to do to realize its dreams of an 11th state title: beat the Falcons twice, which is something the Cavemen couldn't do all year during Region 4 play.
No problem.
TCU signee Ryder Robinson went 4-for-4 with five RBIs, a home run and the go-ahead double in the sixth inning of the third game to help American Fork win its second 6A baseball title in three years with an 8-7 win Saturday evening at UCCU Ballpark.
"We said from the start that whoever wins Game 2 was going to win the whole thing," Robinson said. "When we lost Game 1, we just knew that we didn't have to panic at all. ... We're exhausted. But this is all we wanted, and I think we just wanted it more … We've been waking up since 5 a.m. since November, getting ready for this."
The Cavemen (19-12) has a knack for doing things the hard way. The No. 7 seed in the state tournament, American Fork rode a six-game losing streak after dropping its three-game series to the Falcons just two weeks ago.
The Cavemen even had to win a second semifinal against Riverton on Thursday, depriving the squad of a day's rest that would have helped save some pitching — setting up a battle of attrition after Skyridge narrowly outlasted Mountain Ridge in similar fashion.
"We're just special. We love the hard way, we love a great story, and we believe in each other," said Josh Rojas, the senior catcher who even pitched a few innings on Saturday for American Fork. "This was a great story. I love this story; I'll read it all the time."
Plenty of programs may have given up after a six-game losing skid to end the regular season. Plenty of programs did give up on the Cavemen, head coach Jared Ingersoll quipped. Not these Cavemen, though.
"Everybody was giving up on us a couple of weeks ago, and we knew we'd be there in the end," Ingersoll said. "That little baptism by fire was kind of how we had to kick it in gear a bit. Sometimes trials create strengths. I can't say enough about the kids."
American Fork fought through plenty of adversity en route to its 11th state title in program history, tied for the second-most in Utah High School Activities Association history with Enterprise (only Bingham has more with 22).
The moment American Fork won its 11th state baseball title in @UHSAAinfo history 👇 pic.twitter.com/JOqn5CekfO
— KSL.com Sports (@KSLcomSports) May 28, 2023
"We fought through so much adversity this year. I'm so proud of them," Ingersoll said. "Once Ryder came up, we felt like we had a pretty good chance — and he did his thing. ... He can hit. It's a bummer that he hasn't been able to play defense for us, but he can hit and he works really hard at his craft. I'm super proud of him and his big hit that he had."
A few hours after American Fork's 4-1 win in Game 2 evened the series, the Cavemen jumped all over their region rivals early. Robinson's two-run homer paced a three-run first inning, but Skyridge starting pitcher Mason Thompson pulled back two with a two-out double in the second to pull within 3-2.
Chase Youngberg drove in Gavin Bauer from third as part of a two-run fourth that gave the Falcons their first lead of the game, 4-3.
Kamden Stafford, who came in as a pinch hitter after starting each of the past two games, laid down a perfect squeeze bunt with the bases loaded to score Crew Schenk from third, and Thompson added two more in the fifth with a bases-loaded, two-run single to the left side.
But the Cavemen weren't done yet.
In the ultimate game of attrition, Robinson belted a two-out double that caromed off the right-field wall and drove in two runs to give American Fork an 8-7 edge.
No one better to have at the plate needing a crucial edge, and Jett Walker's leaping grab in the top of the seventh helped the Cavemen seal it for good.
"I think it was just how much we believe in each other, and trust in each other," Rojas said. "We trust in the next guy up, even if it was somebody coming off the bench.
"Everybody just did their job."
Thompson went 3-for-3 with a double and four RBI to lead Skyridge (23-7).
Game 2: American Fork 4, Skyridge 1
At UCCU Ballpark, winning pitcher Dax Watts scattered seven hits with three strikeouts and the Cavemen did all their scoring on just four hits to set up the winner-take-all rubber match in the best-of-three championship series.
American Fork struck early in the first inning, when Josh Rojas smacked a base hit up the middle that he stretched to second. After a misplayed throw trying to pick off the courtesy runner at second, the Cavemen took the 1-0 lead off a hit and three errors.
Watts allowed just five hits to keep the shutout through five innings. He got a little help, too, first from a 6-4-3 double play in the bottom of the fourth and run support from Gavin Schoonover's two-run single in the top of the sixth.
Ty Evans pulled one back for Skyridge in th bottom of the sixth when Isaac Johanson scored on a bobbled ball driven into left field to end the shutout. But the Cavemen turned a 4-6-3 double play and Watts, who re-entered the game from first after just one batter, forced the final out of the inning on a hopper back to the mound.
CJ Mascaro opened the seventh with a double, then came around on a wild pitch and fielder's choice ball to add another run as American Fork evened the series with the win.
Skyridge starter Crew Schenk scattered just three hits with seven strikeouts and three walks before being replaced in the fifth inning in the loss.
