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Congratulations to Ryan Schwenn of Horizon High School for stepping up in the state championship game Saturday night.

What Schwenn lacked in velocity and big game experience was covered by his poise and determination. Lindsey Frazier reported the following summary of the game:

Phoenix Horizon hurler Ryan Schwenn only had a few starts under his belt prior to Saturday night's Class 5A Division II championship baseball game, but no one was able to tell the difference as he led his team to a 2-1 win over Peoria Sunrise Mountain at Phoenix Municipal Stadium.

"He doesn't even come close to throwing as hard as a lot of guys do but he knows how to pitch," said Horizon coach Eric Kibler, who has now won five state titles with Horizon. "He started the season as a reliever for us. He started the Chaparral game and then he didn't start until the state playoffs."

Schwenn, a senior, threw a complete game and gave up five hits and recorded eight strikeouts.

He struggled a bit in the first two innings but later fell into a rhythm. Things got dicey in the final frame after a Sunrise Mountain single and a balk, but Schwenn struck out Trey Stiner to seal the victory.

"Oddly enough, I woke up this morning thinking I was going to be really nervous but I wasn't that nervous," Schwenn said. "I just knew I had to go out there and just do the job. I struggled a little bit in the first part of the game but that's part of the game. But I caught on and started hitting my spots."

In the second inning, Horizon shortstop Dillon Everett plated Payden Yarmer with a triple to right field to give Horizon a 1-0 advantage. Sunrise Mountain southpaw Jaff Decker struggled in the inning, giving up two straight walks before recording an out.

Sunrise Mountain knotted the game at 1-1 in the bottom of the second when left fielder Kyle Hopper singled to lead off the inning and advanced to third on a hit by first baseman David Hall. Hopper scored when catcher Cory Lee hit into a fielder's choice to first base.

Decker found himself in another jam in the third inning when he loaded the bases with one out on a base hit and a pair of hit batters, before he walked in the go ahead run to give Horizon a 2-1 lead. He allowed two runs on five hits and had 12 strikeouts in pitching a complete game.

danny@arizonapitching.com

www.arizonapitching.com