AKRON, Ohio — St. John's completed a historic school year Friday, capturing its first baseball state championship with a 10-0 victory over Leipsic in six innings in the Division VII state final.

Just months after bringing home a state title in boys basketball, the Blue Jays added another trophy to the school's collection, using a six-run second inning and a dominant pitching performance from Andrew Elwer to secure the championship.

St. John's took control early after Aidan Swick drove in Drake Fittro with an RBI single in the second inning. Logan Duncan later scored on a wild pitch before Braden Lindeman added an RBI single to extend the lead to 4-0.

The Blue Jays continued to pour it on as Tyce McClain drove in another run and Cameron Elwer delivered a two-run hit to right-center field, giving St. John's a commanding 7-0 advantage after two innings.

On the mound, Andrew Elwer was equally dominant. The junior struck out eight batters and tossed a complete-game shutout in the six-inning run-rule victory.

Maddox Kroeger delivered the final blow in the sixth inning, driving in Elwer with a hit down the right-field line to seal the 10-0 win and send the Blue Jays into celebration.

Head coach Jerry Jackson credited his team's focus and resilience throughout the season.

"Well, it tells you they were locked in," Jackson said. "We kind of instilled that in them at the beginning of the year, knowing the fact, 'Hey, let's go out and compete and let the season come to us.' It was close in the MAC and we ended up being runners-up, but we knew there was a prize at the end that we wanted to go after. We're very fortunate to be able to say we're state champs."

For the players, the championship represented the culmination of months of hard work and sacrifice.

"It means everything," Cameron Elwer said. "You can't really write it up any different. There's been a lot of blood, sweat and tears put in this winter and obviously this spring. I'm just so proud and happy to be a part of this. It's been such a crazy five months. It's been unreal."

Elwer said the significance of the accomplishment had not yet fully sunk in.

"It's hard to really let it sink in, but hopefully at some point it's going to hit me like a brick wall and all the emotions will come back," he said. "I feel incredibly blessed. Some people don't get this opportunity, even playing in a championship game. This group has done it twice, and I'm just so grateful to do it again with this kind of team."

Andrew Elwer also credited Jackson and his coaching staff for helping guide the program to its first baseball championship.

"We all love Coach Jackson," Elwer said. "He's such a great coach. He's such a great mentor. I'm so glad to do it for him."

While St. John's celebrated, Leipsic reflected on a memorable postseason run of its own. The Vikings were making their first state championship game appearance in 50 years and finished the season 18-10.

Leipsic coach Darren Henry praised his team for uniting the community during its historic run.

"I just told them how much we appreciate them and love them and what an amazing ride they gave the whole community," Henry said. "You look at our crowd today and I told them, 'You guys did that.' You guys got the community together and gave them something to cheer about. Today's very disappointing, but the ride was amazing."

Despite the loss, the Vikings believe the experience will serve as motivation moving forward.

"A lot of guys are coming back," Henry said. "The four juniors will all be seniors next year, and I think they're going to be hungry to try to get back here. It's not going to be easy, but I think they'll be ready to go."

Senior players echoed that sentiment while expressing gratitude for the support from the Leipsic community.

"It's everything," one Vikings senior Myles Camareno said. "The community shows out every game. We probably had one of the biggest crowds here. Getting coach here was the main goal this year. We made it here; we just didn't come out on the right side. But we bonded, we made memories, and it was a wonderful season."

Leipsic senior Julian Zuniga reflected on how far the team had come.

"It was a tough season. We started off really sluggish," he said. "To be here right now is pretty cool. I'm so proud of this team and how we made it here. We didn't finish how we wanted to finish, but that's all right. There's always next year. It was a heck of an outing for these seniors."

For St. John's, however, Saturday's victory marked the culmination of a dream season. The Blue Jays finished atop Division VII, captured the first baseball state championship in program history and added another chapter to one of the most successful school years the community has ever experienced.

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