LAKEWOOD — Wheat Ridge’s Jacob Nelson accounted for half of the terrific pitching duel that unfolded Friday at All-Star Park. At the plate, he was 100 percent responsible for the winning run, as his sixth-inning, two-run home run was the difference in the Farmers’ 2-1 Class 4A semifinal upset over Mountain View.
Nelson, who allowed just three hits in six innings of work on the mound, belted the first pitch he saw in the sixth over the right-field fence to account for the final score. His blast ruined a four-hit, 14-strikeout performance by Mountain View’s Derek Neeper.
“Once I hit it, I knew,” Nelson said. “It felt great.”
The win advances the No. 3-seeded Farmers to today’s 10 a.m. championship play-in game against No. 4 Cheyenne Mountain at All-City Stadium. Second-seeded Mountain View, the last team to suffer its first loss in the double-elimination state tournament, will play the winner for the state title at 2:30 p.m.
“We earned the right to get to the championship last week, and we knew we could give up a loss,” Lions coach Greg Brock said. “We feel good. That’s all I can ask. That’s a heckuva pitcher they got, and our kids battled and almost got it tied up in the last inning.”
Mountain View had two on in the bottom of the seventh before Aaron Olson popped up to end the game. Neeper was as multifaceted as Nelson, scoring the Lions’ run after singling in the seventh.
“(Neeper) threw a great game, and I was looking fastball in our big inning,” Nelson said. “If he threw me a fastball, I was going to swing no matter where it was, and he threw it right where I wanted.
“It feels cool to help out the team. We live another day.”
Wheat Ridge 000 002 0 — 2 4 0
Mountain View 000 000 1 — 1 3 0
Wheat Ridge — Orms cf 4-0-0-0, Marvel ss 3-1-2-0, Nelson p 2-1-1-2, Land 3b 2-0-0-0, Shannon rf 3-0-0-0, Evans 2b 3-0-0-0, Walker lf 1-0-0-0, Bradley 1b 3-0-1-0, Duff c/dh 1-0-0-0, Zarlengo dh 2-0-0-0. Totals 24-2-4-2.Mountain View — Heitman cf 3-0-0-0, Giella lf 3-0-1-0, Miller 1b 3-0-1-0, Neeper P/3b 3-1-1-0, Prins P 0-0-0-0, Moore 3b/2b 3-0-0-0, Netzel rf 1-0-0-0, Thurlow ss 0-0-0-0, Olson dh 3-0-0-0, Ryan c 1-0-0-0, Hlushak 2b 1-0-0-0, Baumann ph 1-0-0-0. Totals 21-1-3-0.LOB — Wheat Ridge 3, Mountain View 3. SB — Marvel, Netzel 2, Walker 2, Nelson, Neeper. Caught stealing — Marvel, Netzel. HR — Nelson, one on in the sixth. PB — Duff. HPB — Netzel, Walker. WP — Neeper, Nelson.
Batteries — Nelson and Duff. Neeper, Prins (7) and Ryan.
Cheyenne Mountain 2, Silver Creek 1
Cheyenne Mountain and Silver Creek produced just three hits apiece in the 4A state semifinal game at All-Star Park, and neither team had an RBI.
Beautiful pitching aside, this one was settled ugly — in Bill Buckner fashion — with Cheyenne Mountain committing one fewer error to prevail and advance to this morning’s play-in championship game against Wheat Ridge.
Silver Creek took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on an error, fielder’s choice and a passed ball, with second baseman Tyler Gibbons reaching home.
The lead evaporated in the top of the sixth, when a single by Cheyenne Mountain’s Kevin Kimball and three errors doomed the Raptors.
Sean Jergensen and Kimball scored after Austin Barry’s two-out slow-roller to first went through the legs of Mitch Dow.
“We didn’t play defense in that inning,” Silver Creek coach Trevor Platt said. “We were very proud of our defense all season long, but today it came up and bit us. If we get out of that inning with no runs, (Scott) Hoyt’s throwing well enough to seal it.
“We just came up short. We were two inches from making the play, getting the out and coming in. That was hard. You have to take pride in your defense and it just wasn’t there.”
As a result, Hoyt lost the pitching duel against Trent VanHorn. Hoyt went the distance, striking out five and walking three.
VanHorn worked 6 2/3 innings, with eight strikeouts and two free passes.
“I felt really confident on the mound, and I’ve had a great defense behind me all year, and I knew I could count on them and we came through,” VanHorn said.
“I’m so excited. Never been here before. Senior year. I’m just excited for it.”
Cheyenne Mountain 000 020 0 — 2 3 2
Silver Creek 010 000 0 — 1 3 3
Cheyenne Mountain — Barry 3b 2-0-1-0, Bates 2b 3-0-0-0, Darby cf 2-0-1-0, Magrini c 2-0-0-0, Schoon ss 3-0-0-0, Aguilar 1b 2-0-0-0, Jergensen lf 2-1-0-0, Lashlee lf 0-0-0-0, Paul lf 0-0-0-0, Kimball dh 3-1-1-0, VanHorn p 0-0-0-0, Bowmen rf 3-0-0-0. Totals 22-2-3-0.Silver Creek — Johnson cf 3-0-1-0, VanDyke ss 3-0-0-0, Hoyt p 2-0-0-0, Poulsen 3b 2-0-1-0, Gibbons 2b 2-1-1-0, Villani lf 3-0-0-0, Dow 1b 2-0-0-0, Pollard c 2-0-0-0, Kramer rf 2-0-0-0, Keith ph 1-0-0-0. Totals 22-1-3-0.
E — Bates, Schoon VanDyke, Johnson, Dow. SAC — Magrini. LOB — Cheyenne Mountain 2, Silver Creek 4. SB — Darby 2, Gibbons. Caught stealing — Johnson, Poulsen. HBP — Poulsen.
Batteries — VanHorn, Darby (7) and Magrini. Hoyt and Pollard. W — VanHorn. L — Hoyt. PB — Magrini, Pollard.
Mike Chambers: 303-954-1357 or mchambers@denverpost.com
