The Kalispell Lakers ended their regular season on a high note by sweeping an American Legion Class AA baseball doubleheader against the Medicine Hat (Alberta) Moose Monarchs on a breezy Saturday afternoon at Griffin Field.

Kalispell (29-27 overall, 12-12 conference) rallied with two runs in the bottom of the seventh inning for a walk-off 5-4 win in game one and rode the arm of ace pitcher Dillon Eaves to a 4-1 win in game two.

The wins locked the Lakers into the No. 5 seed at the Montana-Alberta AA State Tournament, where they’ll play fourth-seeded Bozeman in the first round on Wednesday in Billings. Kalispell split a doubleheader with Bozeman in their only meeting this season.

“Coming into state off this high wave, we’ll definitely be feeling good,” said Lakers second baseman Charlie Obermiller, who finished the day 3 for 4 with a double and three RBIs. “For us it was big to get these two wins, because now we play Bozeman, a team we’re confident we know we can beat, that we beat before.”

Lakers game one starter, senior Hank McLeod, left the mound trailing 4-3 after six and a half innings to an ovation from the crowd, and his teammates were determined not to let his last home start be a loss.

Pinch hitter Adam Frandsen drew a walk to lead off the bottom of the seventh. Pinch runner Justin Wallace advanced to second base on a sacrifice bunt by Chris Combs, then scored on a game-tying single by Obermiller, who got in front of a fastball from Medicine Hat pitcher Cayden Rayner and pulled it down the left-field line.

“I had two strikes on me and I wasn’t sure (what pitch Rayner was going to throw),” Obermiller said. “I was just going to look for the fastball and if it was there, hit it, but adjust to the curveball.”

Braden Goldade relieved Rayner to face Eaves with one on and one out. Eaves worked a full count, fouled off the first 3-2 pitch, then muscled a single to right field to advance Obermiller to second base. Sean O’Connell followed with a flyout to center field, then Dillon Matteson ripped a hard grounder off the heel of Medicine Hat third baseman Lane Aman’s glove. The ball ricocheted into shallow left field, allowing Obermiller to score the game-winning run on the error.

“I had to score,” Obermiller said. “At first I thought I was going to run into the tag, but I knew I had to score there because I didn’t want to go into extra innings.”

McLeod earned the win, allowing four runs on six hits in seven innings.

Eaves made sure the Lakers carried the momentum of their walk-off win into game two by retiring the first nine hitters he faced in order. Medicine Hat (11-13 conference) broke up the shutout in the fourth when Aman scored an unearned run on a sacrifice fly by Konner Lutz, but the Lakers led 4-1 at that point after scoring twice in the first and second innings.

Eaves finished the game with three scoreless innings, needing just 56 pitches to complete a seven-inning two-hitter in his final start at Griffin Field.

“It was a little bit (emotional) knowing I’ll never get these days back,” Eaves said. “Hopefully I can carry this on to the next level and say this is where it all started.”

The wins came two days after the Lakers lost both ends of a doubleheader in Medicine Hat.

“I think the seniors realized that this is it,” Lakers coach Ryan Malmin said. “Several of them made the comment that three of four years have gone by in a blink of an eye, and it’s kind of hard to believe.

“It’s a great way for them to go out on a winning note. The personal performances by several of them were great to see. In particular Hank and Dillon and Charlie, even though Charlie comes back next year, but I’m just happy for the kids and the effort they put in today, because it’s been a little bit of a grind. It was a 22-hour trip from the time we left here to go up to Medicine Hat for two games and then came back that night.”

Medicine Hat 030 010 0 — 4 6 5

Kalispell 010 020 2 — 5 7 2

Cayden Rayner, Braden Goldade (7) and Austin Weisgerber. Hank McLeod and Dillon Matteson. W - McLeod. L - Rayner.

MEDICINE HAT - Lane Aman 0-3, Goldade 2-4, Konner Lutz 1-3, Andy Scott 1-3, Weisgerber 1-3, Nolan Rattai 1-2, Dawson Ruschowski 0-3, Kevin Ellefson 0-3, Tanner Ross 0-0, Kyle Florkowski 0-2.

KALISPELL - Chris Combs 0-3, Charlie Obermiller 2-3, Dillon Eaves 1-4, Sean O’Connell 0-4, Matteson 1-3, Robert Reaser 0-3, Chris Sibley 2-3, Jake Barstow 1-3, Luke LaFontaine 0-2, Adam Frandsen 0-0.

2B - Lutz; Obermiller. RBIs - Lutz, Weisgerber, Ellefson; Obermiller 3.

Medicine Hat 000 100 0 — 1 2 1

Kalispell 220 000 x — 4 6 1

Brendan Schafer, Austin Weisgerber (3) and Konner Lutz. Dillon Eaves and Adam Frandsen. W - Eaves. L - Schafer.

MEDICINE HAT - Dawson Ruschowski 0-1, Lane Aman 0-2, Braden Goldade 0-3, Lutz 0-2, Andy Scott 1-3, Weisgerber 1-2, Austin Schibler 0-2, Kevin Ellefson 0-2, Tanner Ross 0-2.

KALISPELL - Chris Combs 1-3, Charlie Obermiller 1-1, Eaves 0-1, Sean O’Connell 1-2, Dillon Matteson 1-3, Robert Reaser 0-2, Frandsen 1-2, Hank McLeod 0-2, Luke LaFontaine 1-3.

2B - Frandsen. RBIs - Lutz; O’Connell 2, Matteson