Post Falls tops Lake City, reaches 6A district title series

Post Falls kept its season alive at home, using a sharp pitching blend and a timely third-inning hit from Ben Carrasco to beat Lake City 7-1 and move into the 6A District 1 championship series.

Seniors Michael O’Connor and Gavin Wienker combined to hold the Timberwolves to four hits and strike out nine Friday at Post Falls High. Carrasco’s two-run single broke the game open in the third inning, and the Trojans followed with a five-run fourth that pushed the margin to 7-1 before Lake City could recover.

For Post Falls, the win carried more than just survival value. The Trojans entered the district game at 10-8 and had already swept Lake City earlier in April, but this one came with the pressure of a loser-out bracket. Coach Kurt Reese said the team planned to use everyone it had available, and the senior-led effort gave the Trojans exactly the stability they needed on the mound and in the field.

“It seems like we’re starting to figure things out a little bit,” Reese said.

That late-April momentum now carries Post Falls straight into a best-of-three series with Coeur d’Alene for the district title and the top path forward in Idaho’s 6A postseason. Coeur d’Alene earned the top seed by beating Post Falls 16-14 on April 24 in the resumed game from the earlier April 7 doubleheader, a back-and-forth game that had been halted by darkness after six innings tied 12-12.

The championship series is set to open Tuesday at 4 p.m. at Ted Page Field in Coeur d’Alene. Game 2 is scheduled for Thursday at Post Falls High, with an if-necessary Game 3 on Saturday at Coeur d’Alene High.

Lake City finished 5-16 in Gil Pierce’s first season, and Friday’s result ended the Timberwolves’ postseason run in a game they had to win to stay alive. For Post Falls, the victory preserved a chance to play for a district crown and kept the Trojans on track for the state bracket, with Idaho’s 6A tournament scheduled for May 14-16 at Memorial Stadium in Boise.