Today I closed out everything for the 2015-16 high school sports season for KFIL/Cool 104. It was another outstanding year overall for our listening area and local athletes and coaches!

Coverage came to a close once again at the state baseball tournament. The Lewiston-Altura Cardinals made their 2nd straight appearance in Class A. I felt honored that some parents invited me to stay at the same hotel and hang out, and gifted me a 'Back-to-back' section champion shirt! I'll have to be careful to not wear the shirt in enemy territories!

The Cards went 1-2 at state this year. In the quarterfinals, they took on the eventual state champions from Springfield. Springfield entered as the number two seed for the tournament. L-A, as the visitors, struck with a pair of runs in the first and the energy spiked. It quickly faded as Springfield answered with a 6-run bottom half. The first 11 batters reached safely for the Tigers, and they extended the lead over the next few innings until the ten-run rule was in effect in a 12-2 victory.  L-A was held to one hit, and it was anything but the way they wanted to begin their state tournament. That sent the Cardinals to the consolation bracket.

L-A entered day two of the tournament hungry for a bounce-back game. After going 0-2 in 2015, you could tell that this squad was willing to do whatever it took to avoid that feeling this year. The Cardinals once again wasted no time, scoring a run in the bottom of the first vs. the Ely Timberwolves. This time, there would be no rally from the opponent. Landon Kieffer pitched a 4-hit shutout with nine strikeouts, Cullin Neeck had 3 RBI, and Hunter Brommerich had a pair of hits and scored three times as L-A downed Ely 5-0.

The win set up a showdown with Legacy Christian Academy out of Andover for the consolation title. Unfortunately, some of the miscues that plagued L-A in the Springfield game popped up again. L-A once again took the first lead with a run in the top of the second, but LCA scored twice in the bottom half, and after a pair of runs in the bottom of the third to take a 4-2 lead, LCA was in control the rest of the way. The Cardinals fell 6-2.

Lewiston-Altura ended the season with an overall record of 13-5, but went 6-2 in the playoffs. They graduate 11 seniors off this year's team. With a veteran-loaded club, it was great to see them grab a victory at the state tournament!

Award winners for L-A at state: vs. Springfield- Hunter Brommerich
vs. Ely- Landon Kieffer and Cullin Neeck
vs. Legacy Christian Academy- Michael Bjork

Hunter Brommerich was also rewarded for his play throughout the tournament with a selection to the Class A All-Tournament Team. Congratulations, Hunter!! (Photo below courtesy of Adam Brommerich)

Hunter Brommerich (1)
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It was a fantastic time at state, and we congratulate the Cardinals again on a stellar playoff run and a great season!

Photo credit: Haila Rosero, Getty Images

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