Road Warriors upset top seed in legion state tourney

ANCHORAGE — During the first day of the Alaska American Legion State Tournament, the Wasilla Road Warriors used a late effort to upset a higher seed. Wednesday night, the Road Warriors did it again, But this time, Wasilla knocked off the top team in the tournament.

Wasilla scored all five of its runs during the final three innings to post a 5-3 come-from-behind victory over top-seeded Juneau at Mulcahy Stadium in Anchorage.

“Juneau’s a great ball club. One of the best, if not the best, team we’ve faced this year in high school and legion,” Wasilla head coach Ken Ottinger said by cellphone Wednesday night. “I told my boys, you beat them. You got them.”

Matt Palmer drove in four runs and Koby Burns pitched a complete game for the Road Warriors, who move ahead in the winners bracket to face Kenai, which edged Wasilla in its final game of the regular season.

“That’s what they wanted,” Ottinger said of his players and a rematch against the Twins. “They wanted another crack against Chugiak. They wanted another crack at Kenai.”

Fifth-seeded Wasilla beat fourth-seeded Chugiak 9-6 in the first round Tuesday.

“You want to be the best, you’ve got to go through the best,” Ottinger said of the Warriors, who face second-seeded Kenai Thursday at 5:30 p.m. at Mulchay. “Chugiak, Kenai and Juneau, not counting us, those are the three best teams. I think we’re up there (too).”

Burns enjoyed another stellar night on the mound, scattering six hits and two earned runs over nine innings. He fanned four, walked only one, and threw 62 of his 85 pitches for strikes.

“He owned the plate, (threw) first pitch strikes, kept them off balance,” Ottinger said of Burns. “He got them to ground out.”

Twenty of the 27 outs Burns forced came via the ground out, including 11 to Palmer at shortstop.

At the plate, Palmer drove in four of Wasilla’s five runs. With the score tied at 3 with two outs in the top of the ninth, Palmer doubled to drive in Ben Werner and Jeffrey Forster. Earlier in the inning, Werner reached on a fielder’s choice. Forster followed by reaching on a Juneau error.

Palmer also helped Wasilla tie the game in the seventh. Sam Loyer drew a walk to lead off the inning, and later scored on a Werner singled. Late in the seventh, Palmer singled and drove in Werner and Taylon Ottinger, who also drew a walk in the inning, to tie the game at 3.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.