Grant Union/Prairie City's Eric Culley surveys a pop-up during his team's 3-2 win agains Vernonia on Tuesday, May 22, 2023 at Malone Field in John Day.

Grant Union/Prairie City’s opening-round game in the 2023 OSAA 2A state baseball tournament may well find a place in Prospector baseball lore.

The Pros rallied to tie the game at 1 and were then propelled by the late-game heroics of pitcher Talon VanCleave to defeat the Vernonia Loggers 3-2 on Tuesday, May 22, at Malone Field in John Day.

The Loggers scored first, bringing a run across the plate following a ground ball to take a 1-0 lead headed into the bottom of the first inning.

The Pros would level the score in the bottom of the third inning. A Lukas Blood fly ball brought Eric Culley home from third base to tie the game at 1-1 headed into the fourth inning.

That’s when Grant Union/Prairie City pitcher Talon VanCleave went to work. The junior ace struck out eight of the next nine Vernonia batters from the start of the fourth inning until the end of the sixth.

“I was thinking I’m a better pitcher than they were hitter. I felt like I was more dominant,” he said about his performance.

VanCleave’s mastery on the mound kept the Loggers stuck at a single run and set the stage for his heroics at the plate in the sixth inning. VanCleave would step up to bat with two outs and a runner on base in the bottom of the sixth and smash a two-run shot over the left field fence to give the Pros their first lead of the game at 3-1.

“I knew it was gone,” VanCleave said about the home run. “I was in the zone right before the pitch. I told myself, ‘I’m in the zone, I’m here to win,’” he added.

The Loggers wouldn’t go away, however, scoring another run in the top of the seventh following a throwing error which also moved the game’s tying run into scoring position. Vernonia had two outs at that point, and a ground-out to first baseman Trevor Gabbard ended the rally attempt and gave the Pros the 3-2 victory in an opening-round thriller.

VanCleave was huge offensively for the Pros, finishing 1-3 at the plate with a home run and two RBIs. Lukas Blood wasn’t credited with a hit, but his sacrifice fly netted him an RBI in the contest.

VanCleave also got the win on the mound for the Pros. VanCleave pitched the entire game, surrendering three hits and two runs while striking out 14 Logger batters.

Despite VanCleave’s heroics, Prospector baseball coach RC Huerta said the win was a true team effort.

“They just really came together as a team. They’ve got each other’s backs. It’s nothing but love,” he said.

“They’re always supporting each other, and that’s what we’re all about. When you do that together and you have tough games like this, you can persevere,” he added.

The thrilling come-from-behind win wasn’t the first for the Pros this season. Huerta said these types of games are necessary to make a deep run in the playoffs.

“If we’re gonna go into the playoffs and make a run and go against teams like Blanchet (Catholic), Kennedy, the Knappas and all of those guys, we gotta be ready to bring our game every day. As long as they prepare themselves mentally for that constantly, they can do these kinds of things,” he explained.

The Pros will face off with one of the teams Huerta mentioned in the second round of the playoff when they take on Blanchet Catholic in the second round of the OSAA 2A baseball playoff on Wednesday, May 24, in Salem.

The game has a 4 p.m. start time.