Extra inning win advances Homer over Kenai

By Dayten Van Ostrand

The Homer Mariner baseball team, trailing by seven runs late in the game, staged a stunning comeback to defeat conference rival Kenai 11-10 in extra innings and claim its first regional championship in 21 years.

Friday’s victory means the Mariners now move on to play Monroe Catholic in the state tournament this weekend at Oiler Field in Kenai. Losing to Kenai would have forced a playoff game with Kodiak for the right to continue.

“It was a great feeling to beat Kenai after they walked it off on us in the regular season,” said head coach Tyler Krekling. “It’s a good feeling for all the boys’ hard work to finally pay off.”

Homer Mariner team with the region winners’ plaque. (Photo courtesy of Mariner Booster Club Baseball Facebook page)

The Homer Mariners have not won a region championship since 2005. Back then, the teams were all in one division together. They since have been split into two divisions, with Division l for big schools and Division ll for small schools. The Homer Mariners are a Division ll school.

This year’s tournament was played with six teams including Redington, Kodiak, Houston, Grace, Kenai and Homer. 

The Mariners played against Houston on Thursday with a 9-1 win, advancingto the tournament winning game against Kenai.

On Friday, a three-run double by Kenai in the second inning put the Mariners behind early. By the end of the fourth inning Homer was losing 9-2. 

Gradually Homer worked its way back into the game. The sixth inning brought the Mariners back up to a tie at 9-9 with two singles, including Clyde Clemens’ run-scoring hit.

The Mariners then pulled ahead in the seventh with Ruben Yager’s fly that brought home a run and gave Homer a 10-9 advantage.

In the bottom of the seventh, Kenai responded with Jacob Joanis’ fly down the left-field line. This scored a run and sent the game into extra-innings with a 10-10 tie.

In the eighth inning, Homer capitalized on a Kenai error to score the go-ahead run and take an 11-10 lead.

“The energy built up, like insanely crazy,” said outfielder Ethan Peitsch. The Mariners held off Kenai in the bottom half of the inning to secure the victory.

The Homer Mariners huddled together after the game. (Photo courtesy of  Mariner Booster Club Baseball Facebook page)

Freshman Andrew Marley played a major role in the comeback effort. Marley pitched five innings, allowing just three hits and two runs, only one of which was earned. He struck out five batters and walked one while holding off Kenai’s offense in the final inning.

Starter Steven Burns worked the first three innings for Homer. He struck out three batters while allowing seven hits and eight runs, seven earned, and issued seven walks.

Jacob Joanis started on the mound for Kenai and turned in a dominant outing early in the game. He allowed one hit and three runs over four and two-thirds innings. He struck out 11 and walked eight. The Mariners mounted most of their comeback against Kenai’s relief pitchers.

Clemens led the Mariners offensively with two runs batted in. Marley, Clemens, Burns, Cohen Boyd, Evan Pietsch and Ethan Pietsch each recorded a hit for Homer. Benjamin Engebretsen paced the team with three walks, while Ethan Pietsch added pressure on the bases with two stolen bases.

For the season, Jayden Sims and Clyde Clemens won First Team All-Conference awards for Homer. Cohen Boyd, Steven Burns and Evan Pietsch also won Second Team All-Conference awards. Cohen Boyd was selected as Homer’s Good Sports Selections winner, and Ruben Yager was chosen as an Honorable Mention.