The Carbon Dinos started Thursday at Juan Diego High School for their third game of the 3A State Championships. After losing last weekend to Grantsville, the Dinos entered this week knowing that it was win or go home moving forward.

In the opening contest of the day, Carbon faced the American Leadership Academy Eagles. The Dinos played the Eagles in the final game of the regular season winning 11-1. Carbon used a big fourth inning to take the victory in this one 12-2.

Carbon would methodically put up run after run scoring in every inning. In the fourth, the Dinos piled it on scoring five runs from three doubles off the bats of Derek Robinson, Rylan Hart and Cooper Schade.

Jacob Vasquez got the start on the mound going four innings taking the win. Vasquez gave up two earned runs on six hits and struck out three.  Schade came in to end the game going one inning striking out one.

After the contest with American Leadership, the venue would change to Salt Lake Community College but the opponent was a familiar one.

Carbon would face the Emery Spartans, who had beaten North Sanpete earlier in the day 12-11. This was the third time the two teams faced each other. In the regular season, each team won on the other’s home field.

Carbon used their defense to hold Emery in check all game long. The Carbon bats were active, collecting 10 hits and scoring runs in every inning but two. The Dinos kept at the Spartans knocking them out of the playoffs by taking the 10-0 win.

Scoreless through the first inning, Carbon added two runs in the second and then would go on to score three runs in each of the next two. In the fourth, with Carbon up 5-0 and Schade on first, Jordan Fossat would send one over the left field fence. Two batters later Kade Dimick would score on a Ridge Nielsen ground out.

Wyatt Falk was on the mound for the Dinos in this one, and was locked in from the beginning. Getting the complete game shutout. With his defense behind him, Falk gave up just two hits while striking out eight.

Fossat went 2-of-3 including a home run and drove in two runs. Hart, Nielsen and Dimick all collected multiple hits.

Up next for Carbon will be a meeting with the No.2 Judge Memorial Bulldogs Friday at 1:30. Judge fell to Region 12 member No. 6 Richfield to drop them into the one-loss bracket. Once again if Carbon loses it will end their season, should they win, they will take on either No.1 Juab or No. 12 Manti at 7:00.

The 3A State Championships will conclude on Saturday at Salt Lake Community College.