Moment: Lake Orion Clinches on Walk-Off
April 27, 2020
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
When Nick Dunstan singled up the middle to drive in Joe Barnes in the bottom of the seventh inning of the 2007 Division 1 Final, he sent Lake Orion past Farmington 4-3 to clinch what remains the Dragons’ only MHSAA championship in the sport.
That alone makes for a good story. But there’s another little hook as well.
Lake Orion had come back from a 3-1 deficit, tying the score in the fifth inning as Barnes crossed the plate for the second of his three runs on the day. After giving up three runs over the first three innings, Dragons pitcher Josh Deeg held Farmington scoreless over the final four, setting up his teammates to score the walk-off winner.
As for another good story, here’s the rest. That game-winning single came off Farmington reliever Cam Fowler, who moved over from shortstop to start the sixth inning. Dunstan’s single was the only hit Fowler gave up over the final two innings.
The ending surely stung for Farmington, which was making its first and still only Finals appearance in the sport. But Fowler, just a sophomore that season, bounced back in a big way although that afternoon marked his last high school baseball game.
Three years later, Fowler was a first-round pick by the NHL’s Anaheim Ducks, and he made his debut as an 18-year-old the next season. He’s played a decade with the Ducks, making the NHL All-Star Game in 2017 and also playing on the U.S. Olympic team in 2014.
Barnes went on to play baseball at Grand Rapids Community College and South Carolina-Upstate, and Deeg played at Xavier and then Madonna.
Click for coverage of the game from the Lake Orion Review and watch the game winner below from the MHSAA Network.
PHOTO: Lake Orion's Nick Dunstan fires a throw across the infield from his spot at third base during the 2007 Finals weekend.
Performance of the Week: Bridgman's Chuck Pagel
June 23, 2023
Chuck Pagel ♦ Bridgman
Sophomore ♦ Baseball
Pagel threw a complete game, striking out five batters while allowing only three hits and a walk, as Bridgman defeated top-ranked Algonac 7-1 in the Division 3 Final to clinch the Bees’ first baseball championship since 1987. Bridgman had entered the postseason ranked No. 16 in the Division 3 state coaches poll and finished 33-9.
The team’s cleanup hitter, Pagel had gone hitless in Bridgman’s 3-2 Semifinal win over Standish-Sterling. But he rebounded at the plate in the Final going 2 for 3 at the plate, scoring two runs and driving in one. He was named to the Division 3 all-state second team as a first baseman and finished the season hitting .395 with 36 runs scored, 15 doubles and 44 RBI. He also was 8-4 pitching with a 2.21 ERA. Pagel also has played basketball and football for the Bees.
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2022-23 Honorees
June 15: Hadley Keating, Detroit Country Day lacrosse - Report
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March 16: Alaina Yaney, Grand Ledge gymnastics - Report
March 9: Braeden Davis, Dundee wrestling - Report
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Dec. 9: Macey Fegan, Standish-Sterling basketball - Report
Dec. 2: Treyton Siegert, Gladwin football - Report
Nov. 24: Lily Witte, Dexter diving - Report
Nov. 17: Navea Gauthier, Shelby volleyball - Report
Nov. 10: Derek Huisman, Holland Christian soccer - Report
Nov. 3: Thomas Westphal, New Baltimore Anchor Bay cross country - Report
Oct. 27: Justin Wickey, Colon football - Report
Oct. 20: Owen DeMuth, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood tennis - Report
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Sept. 30: Hannah Smith, Temperance Bedford swimming - Report
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Sept. 15: Nina Horning, Lake Orion volleyball - Report
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Aug. 25: Olivia Hemmila, Troy Athens golf - Report