The Daily Inter Lake

MILES CITY - There was no stopping the Billings Scarlets.

The Scarlets knocked off the Kalispell Lakers 7-4 in loser-out play before beating Bozeman 6-3 to win their second-straight AA American Legion baseball state title on Wednesday. This is the Scarlets third state championship in four years and their league-leading seventh overall.

Kalispell finished in third place with a 3-2 record at the state tourney. Both losses were to the Scarlets. The Lakers ended the season 37-24 overall.

"We're proud of the kids for their efforts," Lakers coach Ryan Malmin said. "We're disappointed for falling short … We were close, but we just didn't get it done offensively like we needed to."

Against Kalispell, the Scarlets built a 6-1 lead early before the Lakers tried climbing back in the final innings. In the eighth, Kalispell's Michael O'Connell led off with a triple and Zane Ridings followed with an RBI single. The next batter, first baseman Toby Liechti, stepped into the box and belted a 2-run homer that cut the lead to two.

But the rally fell apart after that as the Scarlets added an insurance run and starter Joe Barta went the distance for the complete-game victory from the mound.

Wednesday's game last only two hours and 25 minutes, almost exactly half the time the Lakers' previous game finished in. Kalispell took Bozeman to 11 innings in a thriller that started on Tuesday and ended early Wednesday.

In that game, Joe Pistorese fanned 11 batters in just over five innings and made a name for himself around the tournament as one of the best arms. The 17-year-old lefty finished with 24 strikeouts in 13 1/3 innings at state. Teammate Mario Venturini had 16 strikeouts in 11 1/3.

The Lakers pitching staff ranked near the top at the state tournament and Malmin expects that same production will return next year.

"Hopefully we can continue to establish a tradition here with that expectation of getting to the state tournament and competing," Malmin said.

"The kids competed well," he added. "They showed some resiliency in that big comeback with the (Billings' Royals, and we didn't panic when Bozeman came after us last night. The kids battled and kept their composure."

Heading into the final day of the tourney, Pistorese was also in the Top 10 in hitting with a .426 average. Sansaver, who will play baseball at Miles Community College next year, made tops as well with a .400 average.

The Lakers graduate six players from this year's squad - Sansaver, Liechti, Pat Hergesheimer, Zane Ridings, Blaine Matulevich and Bryant Eickert.

Kalispell 100 000 030 - 4 6 3

Billings 005 100 10x - 7 8 1

Zane Ridings, Mat O'Brien (6), Mike O'Connell (8) and Zach Brosten and Greg Seaman. Joe Barta and Cole Miller. WP - Barta 'six strikeouts, five walks through eight innings); LP - Ridings.

KALISPELL - Dean Stimpson 1-4, Ben Sansaver 0-4, O'Connell 1-4, Pat Hergesheimer 0-4, Ridings 1-2, O'Brien 0-3, Toby Liechti 1-4, Brosten 1-3, Seaman 1-1, Joe Pistorese 0-4.

HR - Liechti; 3B - O'Connell; 2B - Stimpson, Seaman; RBI - Liechti 2, Ridings.

BILLINGS - Justin Black 1-5, Ty Gilmore 1-3, Aleksei Grosulak 0-3, Jordan Roberts 3-5, Brady Muller 1-4, Cole Moller 0-3, Matt Schrotenboer 0-4, Kyle Miron 1-4, Justin MacDonald 1-2.

2B - Black, Roberts; RBI - Black 2, Roberts 2, Muller 2, Gilmore.

Tuesday's Box

Kalispell 8, Bozeman 6 (11)

Kalispell 031 000 020 - 8 10 4

Bozeman 002 002 020 00 - 6 8 5

Mario Venturini, Ben Sansaver (5), Joe Pistorese (6) and Zach Brosten. Cullin Cameron, Sean Zabawa (5), Dillon Peterson (8) and Andrew Ballinger. WP - Pistorese (11 strikeouts, three walks through 5 1/3); LP - Peterson

KALISPELL - Dean Stimpson 1-5, Sansaver 1-4, Mike O'Connell 1-4, Pat Hergesheimer 0-3, Zane Ridings 2-4, Mat O'Brien 1-3, Bryant Eickert 0-0, Toby Liechti 1-5, Brosten 1-4, Pistorese 2-6.

2B - Stimpson; RBI - Liechti 3, O'Connell, Brosten.

BOZEMAN - BRendan Phillips 0-1, Colter Joyce 0-1, Douglas Crossman 0-1, Justin Abbott 0-2, Kyle Britt 1-4, Caleb Schlender 1-3, Anthony Rinard 2-5, Ballinger 1-4, Jamin Weidenaar 0-5, Andrew Abate 0-0, Sean Zabawa 0-3, Peterson 0-1, Benjamin Leister 0-3, Ethan Wilkes 3-6.

RBI - Peterson, Britt, Schlender, Ballinger.