Coal Ridge earns title shot with playoff wins over top seeds
Clarissa Roberts/Courtesy
The Coal Ridge Titans have been one of the most consistent teams in Class 3A baseball this season, and their postseason performance has been no different.
Coal Ridge, the No. 2 seed, has won 21 straight games, outscoring opponents 294-71. That dominance has carried into the playoffs, where the Titans have beaten two of the top programs in recent 3A history—four-time defending state champion Eaton, and University, the 3A state runner-up the past two seasons.
The Titans defeated No. 1 University 3-0 on Saturday to punch their ticket to the state championship game at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 31, in Greeley.
Coal Ridge’s playoff run has gone through some of the toughest competition in the state. They opened the postseason by beating No. 7 Delta 6-3, followed by an 8-0 shutout of Eaton. They then flipped the script on University, a team that eliminated Coal Ridge in the 2023 playoffs with a 10-0 rout and has finished as the 3A state runner-up the past two seasons.
Junior John Luke Houston pitched a strong game against University, helping the Titans keep their championship hopes alive.
“It’s a four-step process, and we’ve got three steps done,” senior Ben Simons said. “We just have to stay locked in and have good practices this week.”
Simons drove in two of Coal Ridge’s three runs in the win, while fellow senior Logan Harlow added the third.
The Titans have combined consistent pitching and steady offense throughout the postseason. They tallied 20 runs on 23 hits in the regional tournament, with Simons and Harlow handling all 13 innings on the mound in the opening weekend.
Simons said the team’s focus and resilience have been key to their success.
“This year, we’ve had a lot more willingness to never give up,” he said. “It feels great to beat a team like that. They’re a special team, but we’re also really solid, and it was awesome to do that with this group of guys.”
Coal Ridge will face the winner of the elimination bracket, where University awaits the winner of Montezuma-Cortez and Resurrection Christian, in the championship game.
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