CHAMPS: Colts win state title in dramatic fashion

By Pierre Weil / [email protected]

EUGENE – The Thurston Colts were tied 1-1 with West Albany in the bottom of the 8th inning of the Class 5A State Championship game on Saturday when freshman Grady Saunders, the first batter of the half-inning, stepped up to bat. The first three pitches he watched the ball go by. On the fourth pitch Saunders swung, smacking the ball deep into right-center field.

“Right off the bat, I thought it was gone, like over the fence,” Saunders said. “I was just chuggin’. I knew it was going to be at least a double or a triple.”

Saunders’ coach Dennis Minium thought Saunders had hit a home run too. Instead the ball ended up short, with West Albany center fielder Evan Bliss diving to catch it but missing. The ball bounced off the wall at the University of Oregon’s PK Park, but Bliss mishandled it when he tried to pick it up, giving Saunders extra time to run.