Dillon Wink etched his name in the Crosstown history books for years to come.
His bases-loaded walk-off single sent Flathead home with a 17-16 victory over Glacier Tuesday at ABS Park in Evergreen.
“As soon as I saw the walk and the bases loaded, I knew the responsibility that I had,” Wink said. “It was something special really. I was looking for my pitch to drive and I found it.
“It was surreal, It happened so fast. I was just so happy for me and for my teammates, we really needed this win today.”
Wink caught just enough of Max Weber’s 0-1 pitch to put it into shallow left field as Eli Coopman came home.
“It was an outburst of joy, I was screaming running down the basepath and stomped my foot on home plate,” Coopman said.
It wasn’t easy for the Braves (4-7), who squandered a 16-8 lead over the final two innings before Wink played hero.
“Our hitting is phenomenal, fielding is phenomenal. If we get the pitching dialed in this team could be dangerous,” Braves coach Richard Burland said. “If we can get consistent at throwing strikes, we are going to be a very hard team to beat.”
Glacier got the jump initially. Teagan Dixon, Beau Schulz and Weber hit RBI singles in the second as the Wolfpack took a 5-0 lead.
Flathead answered back as Coopman and Miles Arrowsmith knocked back-to-back doubles, with Coopman and Jacob Sullenger scored on the latter to make it 5-2.
Arrowsmith was 4-for-4 with three doubles on the day and drove in seven runs. Coopman added two RBIs on a 3-for-3 outing and scored five runs.
Glacier responded with a pair of runs before Flathead seemed to take control.
After a walk and a Liam Rech double, Leum Saisbury knocked an extra-base hit to score two.
Then a Micah Engle single set up Arrowsmith for another double to tie the game at seven. Flathead added two more to take a 9-7 lead.
Coopman and Wink extended the lead in the fourth with a pair of two-RBI singles that gave Flathead a 13-7 advantage.
Glacier got one back in the fifth on a passed ball before Arrowsmith hit his third double of the day, this one driving in three runs and extending the Braves’ lead to 16-8.
On a day where the Wolfpack bats weren’t their hottest — Flathead had 18 hits with eight for extra bases to Glacier’s six — they stayed in the game by laying off pitches. Seven walks and a hit by pitch helped Glacier pull within on, 16-15 in the sixth.
“It might be the most memorable crosstown ever, even though it was the first one,” Glacier coach Erik Brink said. “For us to battle back was the silver lining. That is hard to do, stay disciplined and come back in a game like this.“
After Weber worked a scoreless bottom of the sixth, Brady Buckmaster walked in the seventh. Zane Huff ran for the Wolfpack catcher and worked his way to third on a stolen base and a balk before coming home on a passed ball with two outs to tie the game.
That set the stage for Wink and the Braves. With two outs, Eli Coopman started the rally with a double to right center.