The top of Broad Run’s baseball lineup has carried the Spartans throughout this season. But in the Region II title game June 4, it was the bottom of the order that delivered for Broad Run - reaching base an incredible 14 times in 18 plate appearances.

That production, combined with a gutsy pitching performance by No. 3 starter Brandon Craft and a nice close out by Dulles District Player of the Year Taylor Clarke, led Broad Run to a 6-5 win over rival Potomac Falls in the region championship game.

For Broad Run (22-3), the regular-season Dulles District champion, it was the school’s first regional title since 1996—the year before Potomac Falls (22-4) opened.

Both teams, who have divided open all the district regular-season and tournament titles the last five years, move on to the state tournament with Broad Run hosting Jamestown at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday in the quarterfinals and Potomac Falls traveling to York.

“The last five years in districts we have each won five titles. We’ve kind of been chasing them and some years they have been chasing us,” said Pat Cassidy after hoisting the regional championship for the first time in his 15 years as the Spartans’ skipper.

Broad Run, buoyed by a five-run fourth inning, took a 6-0 but had to hold on as Potomac Falls, which defeated Broad Run, 3-1, with two runs in the seventh inning in the Dulles District title game, clawed back with two runs in the fifth and three more in the sixth.

“Broad Run played a great baseball game,” Potomac Falls coach Joe Terango said. “Against a team like Broad Run, you have to play a flawless baseball game and we didn’t do that tonight.”

While the Panthers out-hit the Spartans, 12-6, in the contest, Potomac Falls also issued eight walks to Broad Run, hit two batters, and dropped a fly ball and had a throwing error in Broad Run’s big fourth inning.

Craft was making just his third start of the season and he managed to keep the Panthers off the scoreboard until the fifth even though Potomac Falls was hitting line drives around the park.

“I just tried to throw strikes and I finally got used to their cheering [in the dugout],” Craft said.

Joe Delahaba drove in Broad Run’s first run in the second inning, scoring Nick Richardson, who walked to lead off the inning.

In the fourth, Broad Run sent 10 hitters to the plate with back-to-back RBI doubles by Patrick Dawson and A.J. Powell fueling the rally. A key moment came when Connor Jessop reached on an infield single that was knocked down on the edge of the infield. Chris Johnson hustled all the way from first base to score on the play, which included a wild throw.

Potomac Falls got two back in the fifth as Tyler Caldwell (2-for-3, double, home run, 2 RBIs) doubled and scored on a wild pitch. Ryan Miller drove in junior Jackson Rogers with two outs to make it 6-2 but Craft ended the inning with a strikeout. He finished with three strikeouts and issued just one walk in 5.2 innings.

Craft was about to get out of the fifth inning when Tyler Rice smacked a line drive that bounced off Craft’s throwing hand. He fielded the ball but couldn’t get the toss on target to first and then Caldwell followed with a two-run home run over the left field fence.

Cassidy put Caleb Adams on the mound for Craft but the Panthers put the next two hitters on as Ben Sweger walked and Ryan Mahoney was hit by a pitch. Clarke, who picked up wins in the quarterfinals as the starter and in the semifinals as a reliever, then came in but he was greeted with an RBI single by Rogers that made it 6-5 with the tying run on second and go-ahead run at first.

Clarke was able to induce a fly ball to end the rally. In the seventh inning, Clarke yielded a two-out single before closing the regional title win.

“It is huge that we get to play at home Tuesday. We don’t have to sit on a bus for three and half hours going down to York,” Clarke said.

Broad Run 7, Potomac Falls 6
PF: Fisher, Miller (4), Mahoney (7); BR: Craft, Adams (6), Clarke (6).
2B: BR - Siegel, Dawson, Powell; PF - Caldwell. HR: PF - Caldwell.

-Dan “Standup Single” Sousa is the VivaLoudoun.com Editor. Read more of Dan’s coverage at http://www.VivaLoudoun.com