Thurston no-hit in state title game, falls 7-0 to Central

Thurston’s postseason run that had energized Springfield and much of Lane County ended in a wet, quiet collapse at PK Park, where the Colts were no-hit by Central and lost 7-0 in the Class 5A state championship game. What made the ending sting was not just the score, but how close Thurston had again come to a title, only to see a young team run into one of the best pitching performances in OSAA title-game history.

The Panthers seized control fast. Central scored two runs in the second inning, four more in the third and added another in the sixth, leaving Thurston behind 6-0 before the Colts could settle into the game. Thurston also made three errors, a costly number on a rainy afternoon when every mistake magnified the pressure. The game turned worse when Grady Saunders, the Oregon State commit and one of Thurston’s biggest offensive threats, left after a hamstring injury flared up while he was chasing a foul ball. KVAL reported Saunders was crying in the dugout, and coach Dennis Minium said losing Saunders early was deflating.

Central senior Joe Mendazona then took over. The right-hander, who had joined Central at the end of April after recovering from knee surgery, worked a complete-game no-hitter, struck out 14 and walked four. OSAA said Mendazona had torn his meniscus in the fall and missed most of the season after surgery, then touched 93 mph with his fastball in the championship game and mixed in sliders effectively. He finished the seventh by striking out the side, sealing the fourth no-hitter in OSAA state title game history.

The list of previous championship no-hitters is short: Jon Guzman of Henley in 2014, Nick Field of Waldport in 1978 and John Wheeler of Newport in 1965. Central’s win carried extra weight beyond the one game, too. The Panthers had missed the playoffs in 2025, then came back to win their third state title, first since 2019 and the program’s other coming in 1958.

For Thurston, the loss did not erase what the season represented. The Colts reached the state final for the third time in four years and had won titles in 2023 and 2024, showing again that the program remains among Oregon’s most consistent powers. With only four seniors on the roster, Thurston has a base to build around, and the final score at PK Park may end up serving less as a finish line than as a reminder of how high the standard has become.