The Fountain Hills High School baseball team (15-4) was eliminated from playoffs this past weekend. The No. 3 Falcons carried their hot streak into the first round of playoffs, but they were stopped short of their ultimate goal.

Last Tuesday, May 2, the Falcons beat No. 14 ALA Ironwood 11-3. The Falcons collected 13 hits, and juniors Nathan Hughes and Ty Langer each had three. Those two combined for five RBIs, and Langer hit a two-run home run in the first inning to get the Falcons going.

Senior Zach Mendello-Gratton had two hits, and so did junior Tyler Flynn and freshman Jack Irwin. Senior Tim Lamar base ran for Flynn and stole second and third in one run in back-to-back innings to help grow the Falcons’ lead from 5-1 to 11-3 between the fourth and fifth innings.

The Falcons showed out offensively and played well at the plate. Junior Lucas Williams started on the pitcher’s mound and threw three strikeouts over three and two-thirds innings. Williams allowed one run on three hits, and fellow junior David Goldapper closed the game out.

Goldapper entered in the fifth inning with the bases loaded and got the Falcons out of trouble. Goldapper didn’t allow a hit, and he threw seven strikeouts against eight batters to end the game.

“I’m really focused,” Goldapper said. “I’m not trying to overthrow or be too intense. Kind of just let it flow, and that’s what I did today, and I think that helped. I like coming in and just having five runs or even being in a close game, [because] I do good in those, and that’s why I like the closing role.”

Goldapper was able to save the Falcons in one inning, and they found ways to stay alive offensively against the Warriors, too. Twice, sophomore Lucas Grieco got up to bat with two outs, and he made it to base both times either with a hit or by error to keep the inning going.

The Falcons had 14 hits in the first playoff game, and 11 hits and 12 hits in their previous two games as well. The Falcons were feeling confident heading into their matchup with No. 6 River Valley (14-3), but they weren’t able to find much offensive rhythm in the second round.

The Falcons hosted River Valley last Saturday, May 6, and they allowed two early runs in the first inning. Sophomore Aidan Cronican threw two walks to start the game, but he gathered himself and finished with one strikeout, three walks given up, and one hit allowed in over three innings.

The Falcon defense didn’t make an error or allow a run for the next six innings, but their offense struggled to score. The Falcon pitchers kept them within reach the whole time, especially Goldapper who closed again and struck out four of the last six batters, but ultimately, the Falcons fell 2-1.

“Giving up two unearned runs in the first shouldn’t have been a big deal,” head coach Bob Langer said. “We had plenty of chances offensively, but strikeouts killed us. We struck out too much. We struck out in big situations with runners in scoring position. The two unearned runs, we were unhappy, but it shouldn’t have been a hole we couldn’t have climbed out of.”

Offensively, the Falcons strung a handful of good at bats together. They had the bases loaded twice, and Flynn hit a sacrifice fly to bring in Mendello-Gratton for a run in the third inning. The problem was they couldn’t recreate their success.

The Falcons got double plays defensively in the second and fourth innings. Not only did they cut off the Dust Devils from adding to their lead, but Langer said double plays are often a big shot in the arm for his team. He thought the team would rally more, and he also tried a pinch hitter in the fourth inning to switch things up.

Junior Isiah Challman entered for Grieco while there was one out and senior Devyn Hernandez was on first base. Langer said Challman usually puts the ball in play and thought he'd be a good option to try, but River Valley managed to get their own double play on his hit and end the inning early.

“We were complimenting a couple other pinch hit situations, but I thought we put what I felt was the best offense together,” Langer said. “We went to double digit hits in the last two or three games, so we got stronger all the way through. It was just, I guess shocking to lose that game, but going forward, we’re building on where we left off.”

The Falcons had seven team strikeouts, seven players left on base, and only five hits. They are losing five seniors to graduation but will maintain a core group that played in the play-in tournament last year and playoffs this year.

Mendello-Gratton, Hernandez, Lamar, Kyle Biebrich and Cy Dethlefs will be missed next year. The Falcons thought they could compete for a championship this year, and they’ll be motivated to see it through next year. There are eight juniors who could return as seniors for one final season next year.

“They’re going to be bigger, strong and have more experience,” Langer said. “It’s a stinging loss, but they’re not going to forget about that anytime soon, so they’re going to be ready to go next year. I guarantee it.”