Juneau American Legion Baseball team clinched the National Division title Thursday with two games left in their 18-game regular season. Post 25 (15-1; 61 points) took the lead from Chugiak Post 33 (14-4; 60 points) in a doubleheader sweep of Kodiak Post 17 (1-14; 17 points).
Post 25’s pitching led in a wall-to-wall trouncing of Kodiak, with Bryce Swofford throwing a no-hitter in the first game (10Ks, 69 pitches for 32 strikes) and Phillip Wall dealing a shutout in the second (8Ks, 2 hits, 77 pitches for 44 strikes).
Finn Collins hit a grand slam in the fourth inning of the second game. Collins batted for a team-leading five RBIs, the most by a Post 25 player in a single game this season.
Post 25 finishes their road trip with a Friday night game against Bartlett Post 29 (2-15; 21 points) and a Saturday afternoon game against Eagle River (6-10; 34 points). The team will remain in Anchorage after this weekend to play in the state tournament at Mulcahy Stadium July 26-30.
The American Legion Alaska State Tournament is an eight team, true double elimination tournament. Seeding is based on points standings with four points awarded for a win, 2 for a tie and 1 for a loss. Standing in Post 25’s way to clinching the top seed are South Post (13-3; 60 points) and Kenai Post 20 (15-1; 61 points).
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• Contact Kevin Gullufsen at kevin.gullufsen@juneauempire.com or call (907) 523-2228.