For the third time in the last four years, the Summit High School baseball team has advanced to the Class 4A regional tournament.

On Wednesday, May 14, the Colorado High School Activities Association announced that Summit received the 14th seed in this year’s regional tournament.

The Tigers will play as part of this year’s 4A Region 3 bracket, which includes No. 3 Lewis Palmer High School, No. 19 Durango High School and fellow 4A Western Slope league opponent, No. 30 Rifle High School.

As the second-highest seed in the four-team bracket, Summit will take on Durango High School at Lewis Palmer in Colorado Springs on Saturday, May 17, at 12:30 p.m. Prior to Summit’s game, Lewis Palmer will take on Rifle at 10 a.m. 

The winner of each game will then advance to the championship game of the region. Each of the eight regional victors will advance to the state baseball tournament next week.

Summit historically had its first state baseball tournament berth in 2023. As the No. 12 seed in the 4A Region 5 tournament, Summit defeated No. 21 Evergreen High School in the first round before pushing past No. 5 Palisade High School in the championship game.

Summit then fell to No. 4 Golden High School in the first round of the state tournament, bouncing the team to the losers’ side of the bracket. Summit was subsequently eliminated from the postseason with a 6-1 loss to No. 9 Lutheran. 

The year prior, Summit earned the No. 11 seed, but fell to Erie High School in the first game of the regional tournament. 

After going 12-10 last spring and barely missing postseason play, Summit’s return to the regional tournament is a monumental step toward the team’s goals under first-year head coach Coley Thompkins.

“It means a lot to us,” Thompkins said. “We set out as a group with the goal of winning the conference championship and making it back to the playoffs. We were able to accomplish both of those, so regardless of the results at this point, we consider the season a success.”

Similar to previous seasons, Summit steadily picked up speed and confidence in its abilities as the season went on. Over the last few weeks of the regular season, the Tigers went on an impressive tear, earning a record of 6-2.

After sweeping Eagle Valley at home on May 3, Summit defeated Middle Park in two games on May 5 (22-3, 14-1) and then closed out league play with two wins against Steamboat Springs on Friday, May 9. (21-6, 2-1). 

In the team’s doubleheader against Steamboat Springs, senior Austin Koll and junior Sam Eldredge played pivotal roles for the team.

In the first game, Koll pitched a complete game for the Tigers, recording six strikeouts and only allowing 11 hits. In the second game, Eldredge led the game off with a home run before pitching for 3.2 innings and recording nine strikeouts. 

The late push was enough for Summit to make up valuable ground in the league and state rankings. With an overall record of 17-6 and a league record of 8-2, Summit won the league title, narrowly beating out Glenwood Springs on a tiebreaker.  

“There are banners in the high school gym with conference championship titles,” Thompkins said. “The last number for baseball is 1997. That is before any of these players were born. At times it has seemed not possible for this program. We showed it is possible and our expectation now is to compete for this on an annual basis.

Summit closed out its regular season schedule with a rare loss against Longmont High School in Breckenridge on Saturday, May 10. The Longmont Trojans scored three runs in the first inning, but it was a productive top of the third that truly put the game out of reach. 

Recording a total of 13 runs, Longmont boosted its lead to 16 runs by Summit’s half of the third inning. The Tigers did what they could to get back in the game, but the Trojans were too much to handle. Summit lost to Longmont, 18-4. 

Coming off a disappointing loss, the Tigers will look to secure at least a win in the regional tournament. With a record of 13-8, the Durango Demons are a formidable team, but by all means beatable if the Tigers play their best baseball. 

“We have a lot of respect for Durango,” Thompkins said. “We know they are really well coached and have had a tough schedule. We expect them to be a tough opponent. We are going to give it all we got. We expect it to be a close game.”

Both teams played a mutual opponent in 2025 in Montrose High School. Summit played Montrose on March 14, defeating the team 14-7. Durango defeated Montrose twice in a two-game series. 

If Summit defeats Durango, the team will play the winner of Lewis Palmer and Rifle later in the day on Saturday. For up to date information and updates on the regional tournament, visit ChsaaNow.com.