Courtesy photo
Alcona won its first-ever regional title Saturday with a 2-1 upset of second-ranked Mancelona.

MANCELONA - June 6, 2009 - The old adage in baseball is that good pitching and solid defense will give you the opportunity to win each and every day. This is something that second year coach Seth Coffing and his staff have been preaching since the beginning of the season, and over the last two weeks the Alcona Tigers have relied on those concepts to the win the first regional baseball championship in school history.

In fourteen innings on Saturday the Tigers allowed one earned run and made only two errors in in defeating Negaunee 3-0 and second-ranked Mancelona 2-1.

Coffing knew his team was capable of playing this type of baseball heading into the tournament.

“We felt like things could come together," he said, "if we kept working hard and played good defense behind our pitching staff. “

Alcona started the day with the morning game against Negaunee. The team from the Western Upper Peninsula gave the Tigers all they wanted and more. Coffing's point of emphasis was d to get ahead early in first game and the Tigers did just that, scoring all three runs in the second inning. The biggest hit came from Austin Scott, who ripped a one-out, two-RBI single into left field to score Derek Barlow and Jimmy Brockwell.

The Miners only seriously threatened once, in the third inning. They loaded the bases with two outs and left-hander Jason Dellar, who was stellar all day, forced a ground ball to the shortstop Michael Kilbourn, who threw out the runner at first.

Dellar was lights-out throwing a complete game in 78 pitches. He allowed only five hits, striking out five and walking none.

Wade Oliver led the Tiger offense with two hits while Scott, Dellar and Tyler Cole added a hit each.

The Tigers then moved on to play the host of the regional, Mancelona, who knocked off East Jordan in the second game 4-0. The Ironmen came into the game ranked second in Division 3 with a record of 29-1.

Oliver started the game for Alcona on the mound in the Tigers' bid for school history. Alcona actually trailed for the first time in postseason play as Mancelona jumped out to a 1-0 lead on a sacrifice fly in the second inning. Alcona looked to be in trouble in the third inning again after the leadoff man reached base with a sharp single to right field. Oliver, however, helped his own cause by picking off the runner at first base to end the threat.

The Tiger offense managed just two hits, but in the fifth Oliver led off with a single. Jeremy Stoner came into to courtesy run and was sacrifice bunted over by Kilbourn, then reached third on a passed ball. Derek Barlow walked stole second.

In the biggest moment of the season, Alcona went to their bench and Shawn Fettes was called upon to pinch hit. After a long at bat, including several foul balls, Fettes hit a sacrifice fly to center field to score Stoner, with Barlow advancing to third. The Ironmen, trying to throw out Barlow on the play, threw the ball away down the left field line, and Barlow trotted home to put the Tigers up 2-1.

That was all the run support Oliver and the Alcona defense would need as Mancelona mounted no other serious threat. Oliver ended the day with allowing one earned run and scattering nine hits over seven innings. He also struck out six and walked none.

Oliver and Alex Cole led the offense with a hit each.

“It feels extremely good to see the players hard work rewarded, but our work is not done yet,” coffing .

The Tigers (21-18) play Muskegon Oakridge in a Division 3 quarterfinal matchup at Traverse City Central on Tuesday. One more win would advance the Tigers to Battle Creek to play in the state semifinals on Friday afternoon.