Coal Ridge baseball brings home program’s first state championship
Jaymin Kanzer/Glenwood Springs Post Independent
Butch Butler Field in Greeley was a baseball fan’s paradise on Saturday.
The pristine field set the stage for a thrilling Class 3A state championship, as the Coal Ridge High School and the University Bulldogs battled under blue skies and ideal conditions. The game capped a memorable day of baseball — one that required grit, resilience, and ultimately a historic performance by the Titans.
Coal Ridge entered the day needing to be beaten twice to be eliminated, and the Titans’ marathon mindset paid off. The two teams, familiar foes who had met twice already this season, pushed each other to the limit in a 14-inning opener that stretched nearly four hours.
Senior Ben Simons took the mound for the Titans at 10 a.m., and it wasn’t until after 4 p.m. that the final out of the second game nestled into his first baseman’s glove. It took two games and three stellar pitching performances over 21 innings for the No. 2-seeded Titans to secure the program’s first state championship in school history.
“This means everything to me,” Simons said after earning a ring in his final high school game. “We’ve been dreaming about doing something like this since we were 10, and to pull it off is special.”
Coal Ridge coach Dan Larsen called it “clearly the greatest season in the history of Coal Ridge baseball.”
“I’m so proud of these boys,” he said. “When I first started at this program, so many people told me, ‘You’ll never win anything with these kids in this community.’ It says a lot about their heart and determination. It’s going to be a beautiful drive home full of celebration.”
The same nine Titans played all 21 innings across seven hours on Saturday — essentially three full games — but seemed ready for a fourth if needed. While their bats weren’t red-hot, the Titans’ pitching proved unstoppable. Simons, fellow senior Logan Harlow, and junior John Luke Houston combined to stifle the Bulldogs’ offense.
“We knew University was going to fight,” Houston said. “They’re a good squad, and it was going to be mentally tough. We played the equivalent of three games today, but the boys managed to push through and get the job done.”
Houston took the ball for the decisive second game and threw a complete-game gem, striking out two in seven innings to clinch the title.
The day began with a marathon opener that lasted nearly four hours. University walked off Coal Ridge in the bottom of the 14th, forcing a decisive second game. The opener was a classic pitcher’s duel between the top two seeds. University’s junior ace Gage Vikan and Coal Ridge’s Simons both threw 110 pitches — Vikan over seven innings with three strikeouts, and Simons over eight innings with 13 strikeouts while allowing just two runs.
After both teams scored twice in the first three innings, neither plated another run for 11 innings. University ultimately pushed across the winning run in the 14th, with junior Joel Ramirez — who also pitched in relief — delivering the game-winning hit.
Despite the loss, Coal Ridge wasn’t rattled.
“Managing a game like that is tough, both mentally and psychologically,” Larsen said. “But after the game, we knew we still had the upper hand. They had to use both of their top pitchers, and we still had a lot of pitching left in John Luke.”
Simons said the short break between games allowed the Titans to reset and refocus.
“The talk we had in between games was huge,” Simons said. “As good of a program as they are, we knew they didn’t beat us — we beat ourselves. We knew if we played our brand of baseball in the second game, we’d be OK.”
That confidence showed early in the second game, as Coal Ridge matched its entire hit total from the first game within three innings. They plated three runs in that stretch — enough for Houston to take control and carve up the Bulldogs’ lineup.
“I take a breather, and I know that God is in control and has a plan for me,” Houston said. “I just believe in that entirely, which helps me stay confident in big situations.”
While the state championship banner reads “Colorado High School State Champions 2024-25,” Larsen knows the title represents years of effort. The Titans outscored opponents by a combined 299 runs this season and have lost just nine games across the past three years.
“This has been building,” Larsen said. “These boys just love each other so much. They’ve grown up together, played together, and they stick together.”
