Matthew Legere is a Master’s Student at ASU Cronkite School of Journalism assigned to cover Hamilton High School for AZPreps365.com

PHOENIX — Elite two-way players are a rarity in the game of baseball today. The New York Yankees had Babe Ruth, the Los Angeles Angels have Shohei Ohtani, and the Hamilton Huskies have – Kole Klecker? The TCU commit’s all-around performance stole the show on day two of the Boras Baseball Classic of Arizona, lifting Hamilton to a 9-2 victory over Horizon at Arcadia High School on Thursday afternoon.

The matchup between Hamilton and Horizon showcased two of the state's top baseball teams in their respective conferences, both of whom are looking to regain their 2019 status as Arizona state champions. Horizon entered the game 9-1 (including tournament play) with an offense averaging 11.7 runs per game and outscoring opponents 117-30 on the season. There was only room for one team to advance into Friday’s semifinal, however, and it was Hamilton’s pitching staff that prevailed once again. 

Klecker went six innings, striking out six and allowing just four hits to Horizon batsmen, including two singles to Easton Lay and a solo home run to Arizona commit Kade Huff. Klecker showed a good mix of pitches on the mound, featuring a fastball that topped out at 90 mph, a mid-70’s curveball, and a low-80’s slider. The win improved Klecker to a 2-0 record on the season with 22 strikeouts in 17 and two-thirds innings pitched. 

Huff was one of the lone bright spots for Horizon, who – along with his home run – also drove in Horizon’s only other run of the game with an RBI groundout that brought home Jontae Hennesy in the bottom of the sixth. 

“You could definitely feel the energy,” Klecker said. “Both teams were loud but I feel like after the first hit, I just sort of found my rhythm and started throwing."

Klecker’s dominance on the mound has become somewhat of a normalcy for head coach Mike Woods and the Hamilton Huskies, but what many people may not have known (possibly including Klecker himself) is that the senior ace can swing it as well. 

In a Hamilton starting lineup that featured seven players currently committed to continue playing baseball at the next level, Klecker single-handedly outscored the Horizon offense and provided enough run support to qualify himself for the win on the mound. 

After a sky-high warning track flyout to left field in his first at-bat, Klecker connected with two near-identical two-run home runs in the top of the fifth and sixth innings. Despite having blasted a home run in a preseason intrasquad scrimmage, Klecker said that these bombs were the first two that he had ever hit in season. 

“I didn't hit a lot last year but I always tried telling coach that I can swing it a little bit,” Klecker said. “He put me in the lineup, I was just looking for a pitch that I could hit, and luckily I was able to do some damage. I had a lot of fun out there.”

One Husky who is no stranger to the long ball this season is senior outfielder Gavin Turley. The Oregon State commit added on to the hit parade with a two-run home run in the fifth inning for his seventh blast in the last six games – an absolute missile out to left-center field that very well may have been his farthest one yet. 

“The kid is unreal right now,” Klecker said. “He's so locked in and it's just been so much fun getting to watch him play every day, especially knowing how much energy he brings to this team.”

Hamilton’s Roch Cholowsky added another two hits to go along with a double and a run scored from Josh Tiedemann, Cooper Brass, and Jeter Mauzey. Right-handed pitcher Jeremy Jones picked up a strikeout in one inning of work to close out the game from the pen. 

With the win, Hamilton advances to face Utah’s defending 6A State Champions, American Fork. First pitch is scheduled for 12 p.m. at Corona del Sol on Friday afternoon. The winner advances to face either Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.) or Reno in Saturday night’s championship game.