2A Prep Baseball: R.A. Long topples Ridgefield at The RORC to claim State berth

Chopping Away – Coughlan-Wilson the hero in 5-4 do-or-die win over Spudders

R.A. Long's Evan Hart (1) yells toward the crowd during the Lumberjacks' celebration following a 5-4 win over Ridgefield in a Class 2A District IV loser-out/winner-to-State baseball game on Saturday, May 17, 2025, at Ridgefield Outdoor Recreation Complex. (Will Denner/The Columbian)

Sam Barbee for Blast Zone Media / blastzonenews@gmail.com

High School Baseball

RIDGEFIELD — It’s not a very long list of R.A. Long baseball teams that have played games in the state tournament.

The Lumberjacks finished one game away a year ago. Not merely a game, but a single inning, just a solitary pitch away. And yet, the fact they were even that close felt like a win itself. A four-year class of ballplayers who had climbed from the bottom of the league to the brink of the state tournament.

And now, a year later, the 2025 Lumberjack baseball team advances out of the 2A District IV Tournament after a 5-4 come-from-behind walk-off win that featured an unlikely offensive hero and a familiar defensive one.

Keep digging deeper, and it doesn’t seem possible that these Jacks have somehow managed to climb the hill.

“We got 22 guys in our program and four didn’t know how to play at the beginning of the season,” RAL coach Ryan Littlefield said. “We shouldn’t compete against any of these other (schools) that have three teams. We show up and we go toe-to-toe. We don’t care who it is.”

R.A. Long's Riley Young (11) runs to third base as head coach Ryan Littlefield signals for him to hold during a Class 2A District IV loser-out/winner-to-State baseball game against Ridgefield on Saturday, May 17, 2025, at Ridgefield Outdoor Recreation Complex. The Lumberjacks went on to win 5-4. — Photo by Will Denner of The Columbian

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