For the third consecutive season, Big Rapids baseball has clinched the outright CSAA-Red conference championship.

This came after a dramatic Game 1 win against Grant on Monday, where the Cardinals staged a two-out, five-run comeback in the bottom of the seventh inning to defeat the Tigers 8-7. Cole Haist and Noah Sweppenheiser delivered key RBI singles to secure the victory. Singles by Ty Gielczyk and Owen Craven, along with walks by Kurt Wilber and Brody Ososki, set up the winning hits.

"These guys have fought to the end in every game all year long," Head Coach J.T. Scarpelli said. "We've had more than a few instances of close games coming down to the wire, and I'd say these guys are getting pretty good at them. There's no panic, they stay loose, and they keep the pressure on our opponents. I could not be more proud of these guys."

Big Rapids totaled eight runs on 11 hits, while Grant scored seven runs on eight hits. Sweppenheiser led the Cardinals offensively with two hits and two RBIs, followed by two hits each from Gielczyk, Ososki, and Craven. Haist also contributed two RBIs, and Brayden Scholz and Caiden Schuberg each scored twice.

"The conference (title) was a big goal the kids set at the beginning of the year," Scarpelli said. "Now that we've notched that, it's on to preparing for Cadillac in Districts."

Grant won Game 2 by a score of 6-3.

Big Rapids sits atop the conference standings at 12-2, followed by Grant at 10-4, Newaygo at 8-6, Chippewa Hills at 5-8, Tri County at 3-10, and Reed City at 3-11. The Cardinals will travel to face the Tigers again on Wednesday, while Reed City visits Tri County and Newaygo plays at Chippewa Hills on Thursday.