Kadets can't win two in a row

DENVER - No. 3 seed Air Academy's magical run through the 5A state playoffs ended just short of the ultimate prize, as the Kadets lost 13-7 to defending state champion No. 2 seed Rocky Mountain in the second state championship game Saturday.

    "We gave it a great run down the stretch," Kadet coach Glenn Millhauser said. "We had a tough first inning and we lost some of the momentum we had from the first game."

    Rocky Mountain (22-4) got out of the gate quickly as it hit Air Academy (24-3) starter Bob Terry hard for four runs and batted around in the bottom of the first inning. The Kadets also made two costly errors that resulted in Lobo runs.

    "We came out with intensity after we lost the first game," Rocky Mountain coach Scott Bullock said. "I'm very proud of our guys. They hit the ball very well in the second game."

    The Kadets wouldn't wait long to answer as Jared Brown's two-run homer in the second inning sparked a five-run rally to give Air Academy a 5-4 lead after the top of the second.

    "I felt like we were in the game until the very end," Brown said. "We had to use Dexter (Price) yesterday and we just couldn't get the job done."

    Rocky Mountain roared ahead with back-to-back home runs from Jake Stewart and Alex Kelly in a fiverun third inning to take a 10-5 lead.

    "We have a bunch of amazing players and athletes on this team," Bullock said. "We give Air Academy lots of credit because they are a great baseball team."

    Air Academy's Matt Moore added an RBI single in the top of the fourth to cut the Lobo lead to 10-6, but the Kadets stranded two runners and failed to capitalize on their chance to get closer.

    "We were just trying to keep up with them on the scoreboard," Millhauser said. "But we have to tip our hat to Marco Gonzales, he is an amazing pitcher."

    The Lobos would make the Kadets pay for leaving runners on base as Andy Burns hit a three-run homer to blow the game wide open at 13-6 after four innings.

    "I didn't play well in the field today, but I got a good pitch and I drove it," Burns said. "It takes a complete team effort to win two straight state titles, and this one is even better than the first one."

    In the first game of the day, it didn't look like the Kadets would even get a chance to play for the state title, as they trailed 3-1 in the bottom of the sixth.

    Air Academy wasn't ready for its season to come to an end, however, and scored seven runs in the bottom of the sixth behind two-RBI hits by Ross Yeager and Mike Bartlett.

    "It was another huge comeback and Jared Brown pitched great for us," Millhauser said. "Before they went out there to bat in the sixth I told them it was time for some Kadet magic."