Scottsdale Christian, Williams win 2A, 1A state baseball titles

Scottsdale Christian won its sixth 2A baseball championship and Williams took home its first 1A title on May 16 at Tempe Diablo Stadium.

Scottsdale Christian defeated Benson, 7-3, as Dylan Tims went the distance, giving up nine hits, three runs and striking out eight. He improved to 10-0 on the season.

This was the Eagles' first state title since 2022. SCA finished the season with a 26-2 record.

Tims got all the support he would need in a five-run third inning. Colton Stravitz drove in two runs with a double. Owen Kendrick went 2-for-3 with an RBI and Tims had a hit and an RBI for the Eagles.

SCA run-ruled Phoenix Christian 14-0 the previous day to reach its 11th state final.

Williams captured its first state title with a 10-5 win over Heber Mogollon. Its only previous state final appearance came in 1993, a 6-4 loss to St. David.

Williams ended Winkelman Hayden's run of three straight 1A titles with a 2-1 semifinal win to make it into this year's final.

"It took resilience, lots of it, selflessness, and grit," said coach Ethan Johnson, whose team finished 23-7-1. "We knew coming into the season we could make a deep playoff run. This group of seniors is a special group and we have felt like we were capable for a few years."

Johnson credited his 1-2 combo of senior pitchers Jace Maebe and Mario Pedraza for coming through in the clutch.

Pedraza pitched six strong innings in the championship game, giving up six hits, one earned run, walking two and striking out five.

In the semifinals, Maebe went the full seven innings, limiting Hayden to three hits and no earned runs, while striking out nine and walking none.

Pedraza and Cade Trimble drove in Williams' only two runs in the Hayden win.

Against Mogollon, Trimble had three hits and four RBIs. Pedraza went 2-for-4 with three RBIs.

"I think one of our biggest contributors to our success has been this group's commitment to the game," Johnson said. "We have played countless summer and winter games.

"We lost Pedraza in our game against conference rival Hayden in March with a broken hand. So we played without him for five weeks. That is killer when you consider the role he played as a shortstop and starting pitcher. We battled through it."

Getting Pedraza back was key, "not just because of his athletic play but his leadership and energy is next to none," Johnson said.

"We have depth, now more than ever, but his presence was the soul we were missing," Johnson said.

Richard Obert has been covering high school sports since the 1980s for The Arizona Republic. He also covers Grand Canyon University athletics and the Arizona Rattlers. Please sign up for Azcentral Preps Now newsletter. To suggest human-interest story ideas and other news, reach Obert at [email protected] or 602-316-8827. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter:@azc_obert

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Scottsdale Christian, Williams win 2A, 1A baseball titles