EAST LANSING – The Mason baseball program had been checking off a number of goals it set prior to the season, winning the CAAC Red league title and, most recently, capturing the program’s third ever district title on May 30.
Up next, the Dean Shippey Diamond Classic championship game, where the Bulldogs were in the final for just the second time, facing off with Lansing Catholic.
Led by another stellar outing on the mound from junior pitcher Gerrit Koot, Mason was able to check off one of its biggest goals – become the first team in program history to secure a Diamond Classic title – with a 5-2 win over the Cougars.
“I don’t even have the words right now, but I’m super proud of the guys and it’s well deserved, they’ve been special all year,” Mason coach Kohl Tyrrell said. “It’s a moment I’ll never forget and I know these players won’t either, and tonight we’re going to celebrate a big win and history, first team to ever do it.”
Mason scored a run off a throwing error in the first inning to take the lead, then senior first baseman Colten McCaleb drove two runs home in the third on a triple to right field.
Koot settled into a groove on the mound, getting out of a couple early jams and didn’t allow a run until the fifth inning. Koot finished as the Diamond Classic’s Most Valuable Player, earning wins in the semifinal and final with 11 strikeouts while also going 5-10 from the plate with two RBIs.
“The team played amazing and we all rose to the occasion, and I couldn’t have done it without my guys,” Koot said. “It took a lot of hours spent, when nobody’s watching, just grinding to get better. We all love each other, and this is a very tight group. We don;t get down on ourselves and we pick each other up.”
The Bulldogs led 5-11 in the sixth when Lansing Catholic shortstop Ethan Link delivered an RBI single to bring the Cougars closer. McCaleb relieved Koot in the sixth inning to get out of the jam, then induced a strikeout and a double play in the seventh to close it out.
Mason’s season continues in the regional semifinals on June 3, where it will face DeWitt at 5 p.m. at Mason High School.
“We still got work to do, and we’re excited for what’s to come,” Tyrrell said. “We’re just going to keep turning the pages and we got six more of these to go.”
Contact Nathaniel Bott at nbott@lsj.com and follow him on X @Nathaniel_Bott
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Mason baseball captures first ever Diamond Classic title
Reporting by Nathaniel Bott, Lansing State Journal / Lansing State Journal
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