The American Legion Baseball season came to an end for the Helper Merchants after back-to-back losses Thursday afternoon in the second day of the state tournament in Kearns.

Plagued by errors in the first game of the afternoon, Helper fell to North Cache 9-7. The setback put the Merchants in a must win situation Thursday night. Unable to get the offense moving the team suffered an 8-4 season ending loss to Layton.

Adrien Sanchez was hit with the loss on the hill in the first defeat of the day. Despite five solid innings on the hill, Sanchez’s defense committed five errors in the first three innings. Jayden Flemett worked the final two frames in a relief effort.

Despite the loss Helper managed to out hit North Cache 12-10. The offense sprayed hits throughout the seven inning contest, but was unable to plate runs at key junctures in the contest.

Sent to the one-loss bracket, Helper was forced to return to the field just hours later against Layton. Giving up three runs in the second inning, the Merchants were unable to recover as the season eventually came to an end.

The loss on the bump went to Cody Lowe who pitched the first three innings, but received minimal run support.

Thursday’s loss ends a roller coaster season for Helper. Finishing the regular season 12-4 in Southern Division play, the Merchants entered the league tournament the No. 3 seed. A third place finish cemented the team’s place in the state tournament, which began on Wednesday.

Wednesday’s 4-0 win over Lone Peak marked the only victory of the state tournament for the Merchants.