The Helper Merchants suffered a season ending loss in the semifinals of the Utah American Legion State Tournament Wednesday evening at Mountain Crest High School.

Matched against St. George for a chance to advance to the State Championship, the Merchants were blanked in a 12-0 loss. The setback was only the fourth of the season for a Helper team that entered the state tournament as the No. 1 seed.

Camden Wilson allowed five hits and three earned runs as he struck out one batter in three innings on the pitcher’s mound. Quade Henrie and Jordan Wright each pitched one inning as they allowed a combined seven earned runs.

St. George found a steady rhythm at the plate, scoring at least one run in each of the five innings. As a team they gathered 13 hits, compared to Helper’s two.

Jordan Fossat finished 1-1 at the plate as he notched a single. Derek Robinson logged the other hit for Helper in a 1-2 effort at the plate. Helper managed to put just three base runners on board throughout the game.

The win for St. George places them in the championship game Thursday, where they will have to beat Mountain Crest twice to claim the State Championship. Mountain Crest defeated Helper 5-4 Tuesday to advance to the title contest.

Helper finishes the season with a record of 15-4, including a region championship.