By Don Ketchum

Everything to gain, nothing to lose.

When you are the No. 8 seed in the state tournament and reach the championship game, you have few worries.

Phoenix Sunnyslope is in that position now after advancing to the Division II baseball title game with a convincing 9-2 victory over sixth-seeded Scottsdale Saguaro in a winner’s bracket game on Thursday night (May 10) at Phoenix Municipal Stadium.

Sunnyslope (27-4) will return to Muni on Tuesday night (May 15) at 7 with the title on the line and will face the winner of a Saturday (May 12) loser’s bracket game between Saguaro (26-8) and Peoria Liberty at Camelback Ranch in Glendale.

A title would be Sunnyslope's second. It won the Class 4A crown in 1996 under then-coach Rich Carlberg.

Saguaro came in as the winner of the last two titles in the old Class 4A Division I, but Sunnyslope served notice that it was serious from the get-go.

The Vikings scored twice in the first inning, three more in the third and three more in the fifth.

Saguaro, meanwhile, couldn’t get untracked against sophomore left-hander Calvin LeBrun. He went the full seven innings, scattering eight hits.

“I tried to make my pitches and battle back to put the pitches in the strike zone,’’ LeBrun said.

And when a pitcher is presented with a significant lead, “You feel better about yourself,’’ he said.

He gave up a pair of hits in the seventh inning, but said he wasn’t tired.

“I felt good. Because of my conditioning, I can stay long (throw a lot of innings),’’ he said.

Sunnyslope coach Jeff Shillington said LeBrun “is a bulldog. He threw multiple pitches for strikes.’’

First baseman Royal Love drove in three runs for the Vikings with a sacrifice fly and a two-run single.  He also walked and doubled and scored a pair of runs.

Collin O’Neil drove in two runs with a fifth-inning single.

Of the big win, Shillington said, “We’ll take it. We’ve played good baseball for most of the year. We have taken the same approach – play hard, figure on scoring some runs and get good pitching.

“I’m proud of the boys. They should be fun to watch.’’