Prep baseball: Morgan’s 11th-inning hit delivers Layton the Region 1 title
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- Layton High catcher Paul York, right, tags out Farmington’s Tanner Madsen at the plate during a Region 1 baseball game Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Layton.
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- Layton High third baseman charges a ball at the hot corner during a Region 1 baseball game Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Layton.
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- Layton High pitcher Kaleb Hall rocks to deliver a pitch during a Region 1 baseball game Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Layton.
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- Layton High’s Burkon Beus takes a cut at a Farmington pitch during a Region 1 baseball game Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Layton.
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- Farmington High’s Britton Graham fires a pitch to a Layton batter during a Region 1 baseball game Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Layton.
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- Layton High infielder Austin Pritchett pursues a bouncer during a Region 1 baseball game Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Layton.
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- Farmington High’s Cardon Hadley swings at a Layton pitch during a Region 1 baseball game Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Layton.
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- Layton High’s Nik Bielaczyc barrels toward third base during a Region 1 baseball game Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Layton.
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- Layton High’s Austin Pritchett, left, sees in a throw to second as Farmington’s Cardon Hadley dives into the bag during a Region 1 baseball game Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Layton.
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- Farmington teammates congratulate Cardon Hadley (7) after scoring a run against Layton during a Region 1 baseball game Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Layton.
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- Layton High’s Burkon Beus runs to first base during a Region 1 baseball game Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Layton.
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- Layton High’s Nik Bielaczyc holds his senior day offerings before a Region 1 baseball game Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Layton.
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- Farmington infielder Zach Hecht throws across the diamond during a Region 1 baseball game Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Layton.
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- Farmington High’s Cardon Hadley trots home for a run during a Region 1 baseball game Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Layton.
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- A parachuter touches down on Layton High’s infield before a Region 1 baseball game Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Layton.
LAYTON — It seemed like forever.
After a rain delay, senior day activities, and more than 4 1/2 hours of baseball, Layton and Farmington were still battling after 8 p.m. Tuesday and it was getting dark.
It had also been a long day at the plate for Layton senior Zane Morgan, who had one hit in six at-bats when he stepped into the box in the bottom of the 11th inning with two outs, the bases loaded and the score tied at eight.
“I had been having a rough game; it was going really long and I kind of wanted it to be over,” Morgan said. “I needed to have some confidence in myself and knew I was good enough.”
Morgan lashed a hot ground ball through Farmington third baseman Zack Burt into short left field and Layton won the game 9-8 — and the Region 1 championship in the process.
Layton (18-5, 10-1 Region 1) senior catcher Paul York got hit by a pitch leading off the bottom of the 11th and a speedup runner eventually advanced to third on a Burkon Beus sacrifice bunt and on a wild pitch.
Farmington (7-17, 5-6) intentionally walked seniors Jowell Dasni and Will Hoffman, setting the table for a surprised Morgan.
“The hit batter got things going; we knew we needed baserunners. At first, I didn’t know they were intentionally walking them, so when I saw Will, the batter in front of me going to first base, I was kind of confused,” Morgan said. “But I ended up coming through.”
Senior pitcher Andres Cedeno came on in the seventh inning and threw shutout baseball for five innings, keeping Layton square with the Phoenix.
“Always have your mind ready. There’s going to be situations where your team might need you and you need to get the job done,” Cedeno said. “My arm felt pretty good; I felt like I was going to have a good day. I’ve been putting in a lot of work and I think that pays off.
“Focus on my work and what I’m doing and eventually we’ll come together and help each other out,” Cedeno added.
Cedeno struck out five, walked three and allowed three hits in his five-inning stint.
If there seems to be a common thread to Layton’s success this year, it was that the seniors have delivered. That’s by design, according to Lancers’ coach Robert Ferneau.
“Ultimately, you win with seniors, and seniors stepped up for us in the end. Our seniors got the job done when we needed them the most,” Ferneau said.
Layton played catch-up most of the game. The Lancers trailed 4-0 in the fourth before putting five up in the home half to take a 5-4 lead.
“We got some momentum and were stringing some hits together; guys were coming through,” Morgan said.
Back-to-back two-run doubles by senior Nik Bielaczyc and Dasni got the Lancers even, and yet another double, by Hoffman, gave them the one-run edge.
But Farmington led 8-5 after a four-run sixth inning before Layton pulled to within 8-7 in the bottom half on RBI groundouts by Morgan and senior shortstop Austin Pritchett.
Hoffman’s bases-loaded walk in the seventh sent the game to extra innings.
“Give credit to Farmington; they played well and hard. They showed up, put pressure on us and we didn’t respond very well,” Ferneau said.
Whether it was the weather, senior day celebrations, or the pressure of trying to wrap up the region title, Layton was out of sorts early on, stranding 12 runners through seven innings and leaving 15 aboard overall.
The Lancers committed several base-running boo-boos and other errors in the field that could have led to their demise on Tuesday.
“I don’t think we were ready to go early on; we were in a dogfight the whole game and made some key mistakes that could have and maybe should have cost us the ball game,” Ferneau said. “We didn’t put the ball in play, didn’t swing when it mattered; but this is a resilient bunch and they did just enough to get it done for us today.”
A late-emerging sun posed interesting problems for players on the left side of the diamond before the light began to fade in the later innings.
“It was actually kind of nice that it was starting to get dark because the sun coming over the first base dugout was getting really bad in the field, and the ball coming through the shadows sucked,” Morgan said. “A little bit in my left eye but not nearly as bad as the other two infielders.
Still, Layton banged out 16 hits, paced by three each from Beus and Dasni. Bielaczyc, Hoffman, Dasni and Morgan had two RBIs apiece for the Lancers.
Sophomore shortstop Zach Hecht rapped four hits for the Phoenix and junior left fielder Tanner Madsen had three RBIs.
Ferneau has coached Layton baseball for 32 years and said he had no idea how many region championships his teams have won, reflecting “hopefully not my last” for those who wonder about retirement.
“Region champs is pretty good, to finally get one … being the one to end it,” Cedeno said. “I never focused on my pitch count, just getting the work done. I feel like I could have gone two more innings if I had to.”
Bob Judson has covered high school sports for the Standard-Examiner for the past 51 years.
