Sunrise Mountain baseball is always in the hunt, but a lot of factors have to fall into place for even the best teams to reach a baseball title game.
In the last two weeks Michael Deardoff's veteran team cracked the code. The Mustangs beat #3 seed Scottsdale Desert Mountain 9-8 in nine innings in the regular season finale and have gained confidence and command with each round of the 5A playoffs.
In Friday's semifinal at HoHoKam Stadium in Mesa #5 Sunrise Mountain (18-5) spotted #8 Queen Creek Casteel (13-8) a two-run homer in the top of the first. Led by 13 seniors, the Mustangs never panicked, relying on a deep lineup and stellar pitching for two seniors to win 7-2.
