Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

EAST LANSING —Bridgman didn’t get a hit until the seventh inning of its semifinal against Standish-Sterling in the Division 3 state semifinals at Drayton-McLane Stadium on the campus of Michigan State University Thursday.

But all Bees (32-9) needed were two hits during that set of at-bats to move on to their first final since 2011. Bridgman will face Algonac, a 4-1 winner over Lansing Catholic in the championship game at 11:30 a.m. Saturday.

With the score tied 2-2 and a runner on second base, freshman Cooper Allwood delivered the game-winning single to left with one out, scoring junior Alec MacMartin to give Bridgman the victory.

MacMartin started the inning with the first hit of the day off of Standish-Sterling sophomore starter Sam Briggs, and then was sacrificed over to second.

“We were just having fun and getting comfortable in the situation,” Allwood said. “Just never giving up. We’ve been in games like this before. Nothing new.”

After neither team collected a hit through the first three innings, Standish-Sterling got something going in the top of the fourth.

Junior Cooper Prout led off with a double, and then sophomore pinch runner Brecken Stokoszynski scored on an RBI single by senior Brayden Schabel.

In the bottom of the fourth, Bridgman put runners on second and third with two outs after an error and a hit batter, but a flyout ended the threat.

In the fifth, Standish-Sterling took a 2-0 lead when a fly ball by Briggs just eluded the Bridgman left fielder down the line, scoring sophomore Brock Bartlett.

The Bees answered in the bottom half of the fifth, tying the game at 2-2 without registering a hit thanks in large part to three infield errors by Standish-Sterling.

An RBI groundout by Allwood made it 2-1, and then Bridgman tied the game at 2-2 following another error with a runner on third and two outs.

The score remained that way until Allwood’s single in the seventh.

“We were just missing that timely hit,” Bridgman head coach Justin Hahaj said. “We finally got it.”

MacMartin got the win on the mound for Bridgman, allowing four hits, walking one and striking out six in a complete-game effort.

Briggs lost for the first time this year, striking out eight for Standish-Sterling (29-15), which fell in the Semifinals for the second-straight season.

Standish-Sterling head coach Ryan Raymond said it was more than just four errors that cost his team.

“We didn’t hit in the right spots either,” Raymond said. “We had some opportunities to get some hits and knock some more runs. It’s a team effort.”

 

(By Keith Dunlap, special for MHSAA.com)