The Blair Junior Legion roster is the best of the Eastern Nebraska Baseball League.
The Post 154 Bears secured the distinction July 1, notching a 10-7 tournament championship final win at Hickman. The victory capped a 3-0 run through the tournament.
“It was a team effort,” pitcher Kaden Sears said. “Getting our bats to work.”
It was a special championship night, considering how long the Blair team has been together.
“Most of the kids I've known since I started playing baseball,” Hayden Berg said. “I've played with the same kids for as long as I can remember.”
Coach AJ Bilslend's squad fell behind 3-1 through two innings, but responded with five runs during the third and three in the fourth to take a 9-5 lead into the fifth. Berg notched a key hit to the fence during the turnaround, putting the Bears out front.
From there, Post 105 outscored Blair 2-1, but it was enough to claim the league crown from the Bears. Nathan Wachter led Bilslend's squad with three RBIs, while Berg and Lee Chavez-Lara notched two apiece. Chavez-Lara and Ethan Baessler logged two hits each, too, as Hickman committed five errors.
Defensively, Sears went the distance, striking out five batters over seven innings.
“I just tried to keep my composure,” he said. “Keep pitching strikes and let my defense work.”
Post 154 went 2-0 in its next two games, too.
First, the Bears earned win No. 17 Saturday against the Millard Sox Black, 10-3. Chavez-Lara, who was pitching, got out of a bases-loaded, none-out scenario during the final inning to finish the game. He earned the first out with a third strike before catcher Joe Rodriguez stood up out of his squat and hurled the ball down to Sears at third for another.
Chavez-Lara then induced a groundball to the shortstop, Wachter, who scooped it up and threw the runner out while at first while on the run himself.
The Bears then earned a 3-2 victory Tuesday at Boyd Park in Omaha. The win over Central moved Post 154's season record to 18-5.
Next, Blair competes in the Class B Area 3 Tournament at Omaha Roncalli. Play starts today, though matchups were unavailable as of press time.
“We just need to keep energy up, which our bench does a lot,” Berg said. “Our bench is always hyping us up.”
The Bear was confident would be prepared for postseason play.
“I think we are ready for districts,” he said.
Seniors beat Central 9-0
The Blair Senior Legion baseball team improved to 10-20 Tuesday with a 9-0, run-rule victory at Omaha Central. The Bears ended the road game in just five innings.
The win was Blair's second in three games. Morgan Rump returned to the lineup with two RBIs, while TJ Swaney struck out 13 batters for the pitching win.
The Bears were scheduled to play Omaha Northwest on Thursday and host Springfield tonight at 7 p.m.
