Cheyenne Mountain vs Golden in the 4A state championship

Cheyenne Mountain had a tough task. The Red-Tailed Hawks needed to win twice on Friday just to reach the state championship game. They accomplished that.

The next step was to win two more against top-seeded Golden. They nearly pulled that off as well.

Cheyenne Mountain knocked off Golden, 5-2, in game 1 to force a decisive second game. Unfortunately, the Hawks luck ran out in game 2, as the Demons stormed back for a 5-1 win and the 4A state championship.

The Red-Tailed Hawks gave a valiant effort, keyed by an all-time clutch performance in game 1 from Nate Glad.

The senior entered the game with the bases loaded and just one out in the bottom of the sixth inning, in a 2-2 game. Glad retired the final two batters to escape the jam. In the bottom of the seventh, Golden had the winning run at third. But Glad stuck out back to back batters to end the frame and force extra innings.

In the top of the eighth, Glad smacked a 2-run single to give the Hawks the lead for good. He later scored on a base hit from Noah Reickert.

Glad retired the final three batters he faced to clinch the victory for Cheyenne Mountain.

"When I was I was called up to pitch in that baseball situation, I was kind of surprised because I haven't really been in like a in a situation like that this year, and I didn't really get a warmup, so I just kind of had to focus up, and just do what I practiced and just trust what I learned that'll work, and it just worked out," Glad said. "I trusted it and did my best and was able to keep our team in the game. I'm just really happy I got the chance... I'm just really happy that I was able to come through and I get to keep our team in it."

Cheyenne Mountain finishes the year with a 22-9-1 record.