Lake Orion wins district title with upset over Orchard Lake

By Anthony Schulte
Sports Contributor
WEST BLOOMFIELD — After an up and down 2023 campaign, the Lake Orion varsity baseball team had their sights set on the district round of the MHSAA state playoffs.

Lake Orion competed in District 29, hosted by West Bloomfield. This district includes Waterford Mott, Orchard Lake St. Mary’s, Waterford Kettering, West Bloomfield and Lake Orion.

The Dragons’ first game was against the West Bloomfield (23-12) Lakers on Saturday. The game was scoreless through 11 innings until the Dragons scored one run on a walk in their half of the 11th to win the game, 1-0.

Dragon pitcher Kael Gahan threw five and a half innings of scoreless baseball with 11 strikeouts, while Casey Robertson threw the rest of the game in relief with four strikeouts.

With their win against the Lakers, Orion had their toughest task of the year ahead of them. The number one ranked, according to the MHSAA, is Orchard Lake St. Mary’s Eaglets (33-6).

The Eaglets struck first, scoring two runs in the opening inning. Lake Orion answered right back, with three runs of their own in the second inning. Ryan McCartan singled to left field, scoring Brandon Nepjuk. Travis Acker hit a double later in the second inning, scoring Max Timpf and McCartan.

That would be all the offense for the afternoon as pitchers Michael Jockwig and Robertson held back the high-powered Orchard Lake St. Mary’s offense. Lake Orion won with a final score of 3-2.

The Dragons are now 23-13, according to the MHSAA.

Lake Orion has moved on to the regional round of the MHSAA playoffs. They face the Lakeland Eagles at Lakeland on Wednesday at 4:30 p.m.