EUGENE — A back-and-forth quarterfinal that turned into a slugfest after a measured start ended with Philomath one run short, as 14th-seeded Philomath fell 7-6 to third-seeded Marist Catholic on Tuesday at Scott Halbrook Field.
The Warriors led twice and held a 6-5 advantage going into the bottom of the sixth before the Spartans pushed across two runs to retake the lead and hold on for the win.
Gallery: PHS baseball at Marist Catholic (Tuesday, May 26, 2026)
A collection of photos from Philomath High’s 7-6 baseball loss in the first round of the Class 4A playoffs at Marist Catholic on Tuesday.
“It was kind of a microcosm of our season where we looked really, really good at times and then we just gave things away — it’s kind of how our season was all year,” Philomath coach Levi Webber said. “In one game, we would look like one of the best teams in the state and the next game, we turn around and don’t even know what team is out there. So, that’s kind of how the day was.”
Philomath took a 2-0 lead in the top of the third on a one-run single by junior AJ Altishin and a bases-loaded walk by senior Caleb Babcock. Marist Catholic answered in the bottom half when senior Colt Mann singled and later scored on a fly out to center, reaching home on a throwing error into the infield.
Babcock and Marist starter Gianni Lombardi were both effective through four innings before the offenses broke through.
“Early on, I thought we had some really good at-bats but the thing that got us was we just made too many mistakes on the bases,” Webber said. “I mean, we grounded into a double play in the first inning, that’s just baseball, that happens. But then we pop into two bunt double plays — one we missed a sign and the other one we just don’t get a great read.”
The Spartans scored four runs with two outs in the fifth to take a 5-2 lead. Junior Brock Cranmer ripped a two-run double to left and junior Alec Malpass followed with a two-run single to left.
“Caleb probably got a little bit tired and some things got away from him a little bit,” Webber said. “But they’re a good team, I mean, they’re a really good team.”
Webber said the Spartans played the way scouting reports suggested they would.
“Everything we heard coming into this game is they’re very athletic, they’re very scrappy, they’re not going to give you anything, they’re going to compete at the plate and they did all that and more,” Webber said. “They made it really tough on us.”
The Spartans exhibited sound discipline at the plate.
“Caleb wasn’t able to punch out as many guys as he usually does because they do such a good job when they get to two strikes and just battle,” Webber said. “We got into one of those situations where it’s who’s going to have the ball last? We had our opportunities and just couldn’t quite finish.”
Trailing by three, the Warriors responded in the sixth. Junior Jacob Hernandez reached on a one-out infield single and took second on an errant throw from the shortstop that went out of play. Sophomore Sammy Hernandez and senior Wylie Griffith drew two-out walks to load the bases. Altishin delivered a one-run single to left and Babcock followed with a two-run single to center to tie the score at 5-5. Marist’s pitcher then mishandled a grounder from junior CK Kvidt to keep the inning alive, and Altishin scored on a passed ball to give Philomath a 6-5 lead.
“You give up a four spot, you give up the lead, and things can go in a lot of different directions,” Webber said. “But to their credit, and this is how we’ve been of late, they just continue to put together good at-bats, get guys on base and do a good job of driving in runs. Then we picked up a passed ball that gives us the lead.”
Marist regained the lead in the bottom half. Freshman Cooper Jones led off with a single to right and Mann was hit by a pitch. Senior Stephen Riley reached on a bunt single to load the bases with no outs. The Spartans tied the game on a sacrifice fly to center by junior Grady Hazen, and Lombardi singled to left to score Mann for a 7-6 lead.
The play at the plate on the final run was close with Philomath catcher Cameron Herbert appearing to tag Mann on the foot at about the same time he reached the plate. The runner was ruled safe.
“We gave them a couple of base runners to start out that inning, which was tough, and then the play at the plate was a little questionable,” Webber said. “We just kind of let it slip away.”
Philomath had one last chance in the seventh. Junior Rustan Woosley reached on an error and Jacob Hernandez followed with a single to right. A sacrifice bunt by sophomore Jayce Iverson moved the runners to second and third with one out. But a strikeout and a ground out to third ended the game.
“I was super proud of our guys for coming back, especially on the road against a guy like that to put yourself back in a position with the lead going into the sixth inning,” Webber said.
Altishin led Philomath at the plate, going 3 for 3. Babcock drove in three runs and Jacob Hernandez collected two hits. Babcock threw 108 pitches in a complete-game effort, allowing 10 hits and one walk while striking out five.
For Marist Catholic, Riley went 2 for 3, Malpass finished 2 for 4 with two RBIs and Cranmer drove in two. Lombardi went 5-2/3 innings and allowed five hits and seven walks with three strikeouts. Cranmer relieved in the sixth and went 1-1/3 with three hits and no walks allowed and one strikeout.
Philomath ends the season with a 14-13 record.
“It didn’t start out great but then we came back and did a great job in league and put ourselves in this position,” Webber said, a reference to the team’s 4-7 record in nonconference play followed by 10-5 in the Oregon West. “I really thank both Caleb and Wylie, four-year guys that played in the varsity program for us and did a great job as seniors this year, providing leadership, playing good baseball and doing all the things we want.”
Marist Catholic (22-4) advances to the quarterfinals and will host 11th-seeded Phoenix at 4:30 p.m. Friday. The Pirates advanced with a 12-7 win over sixth-seeded Gladstone.
Marist Catholic 7, Philomath 6
Tuesday, May 26, at Scott Halbrook Field, Marist Catholic HS, Eugene
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E Philomath (14-13) 0 0 2 0 0 4 0 6 8 2 Marist Catholic (22-4) 0 0 1 0 4 2 x 7 10 3
Babcock and Herbert; Lombardi, Cranmer (6) and Hazen. W — Cranmer. L — Babcock. 2B — Cranmer.
