Lake Placid did just that on Wednesday, and the Blue Bombers’ reward is a trip to the Section VII, Class C championship game. Playing at home for the final time this season, Lake Placid claimed a 6-1 victory over Northern Adirondack.

After taking a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning, the Blue Bombers were never really threatened the rest of the way, although they weren’t able to get comfortable until they plated three more runs in the bottom of the fifth to push their edge to 5-0. Both teams added single runs in the sixth inning to round out the scoring.

On the mound, Lake Placid’s senior pitching trio of Scott Sharlow, Jesse Izzo and Jake Coursen teamed up to give up just four hits. In the field, the Blue Bombers played error-free baseball, and at the plate, they rapped out eight hits to get the job done.

Sharlow was Lake Placid’s starting pitcher and went five innings to earn the victory. He fanned five Bobcats batters, walked none and scattered three singles.

Jake Coursen delivers a pitch to the plate during the seventh inning. (Enterprise photo — Lou Reuter)

Izzo took the mound in the top of the sixth. He struggled early while giving up NAC’s only run, but settled down and struck out three straight batters to get out of the inning with limited damage.

Coursen worked the final inning and put down the Bobcats in order to end the game and send Lake Placid into Monday’s Class C final at SUNY Plattsburgh against top-seeded Ticonderoga.

The Sentinels blanked AuSable Valley 5-0 in Wednesday’s other Class C semifinal.

Sharlow, Duncan Segger and Tyler Hinckley finished with two singles each in the win, Izzo belted a double and Coursen added a single to account for Lake Placid’s other hit.

Casper LaBarge led NAC with a pair of singles and one RBI, and Cody Peryea and Kayden Guerin chipped in a single each in the loss.

Scott Sharlow, left, and Matt Brandes, share a laugh as they leave the field at the end of the sixth inning. The two players combined to score four runs in Lake Placid’s 6-1 victory. (Enterprise photo — Lou Reuter)

Lake Placid head coach Brian Brandes said his players were ready for Wednesday’s game the moment they showed up for classes in the morning.

“It’s almost a workman’s mentality,” said Brandes, whose Blue Bombers improved to 9-5 overall. “When they came to school, they said ‘We’re ready. Let’s go.’ And when they got on the field, same thing. They were working hard every second and everyone was in the game.”

The Bobcats picked up their first hit during their opening at-bat when LaBarge rapped a one-out single to left. He was left stranded after Sharlow recorded his second strikeout of the game and the next batter popped out to second base.

Matt Brandes, Lake Placid’s leadoff hitter, started the bottom of the first by drawing a walk off NAC starting pitcher Brett Juntunen. Brandes moved to second on a sacrifice ground out by Segger, and then reached third on a Sharlow single. Coursen then singled to knock in Brandes. Sharlow also reached home in the inning on a passed ball for a 2-0 Lake Placid lead.

Sharlow and Juntunen then settled down as they each pitched three scoreless innings.

The Blue Bombers came up big in the bottom of the fifth getting a run each from Brandes, Segger and Sharlow.

Leading 5-0, Lake Placid gave up its only run in the top of the sixth when LaBarge singled off Izzo to send Peryea across the plate.

Lake Placid answered in the bottom of the inning on an RBI single by Segger that sent Hinckley home.

After going the entire season without a hit, Hinckley finally came through with a pair of singles. The speedy junior reached first by beating out the throw on an infield hit and then belted a single over NAC’s third baseman and into the outfield.

“Today was great. We made no errors and we were hitting the ball really well,” said Segger, the Blue Bomber’s catcher. “I think it’s a great confidence booster going up against Ti, because it’s going to be a really tough game. It’s been a great season and we’re definitely eyeing that sectional title.”

Bobcats’ coach Dennis LaBarge was impressed with Lake Placid’s play, and added that his young team was definitely in the game but ultimately, couldn’t come up with a few plays that could have possibly turned the tide.

“They pitched well, they played very good defense, and we had about five or six times when we hit the ball hard but it was right at them or they made the play,” LaBarge said. “They’re a good team. A couple times I thought we had a hit but it just didn’t get by them.

“Brett pitched a good game,” LaBarge continued. “On their first couple runs, I thought our infielders could have made plays on them. It’s a semifinal game; get dirty, dive, save it, it just didn’t happen.”

Juntunen, one of two seniors on the Bobcats, went the distance while taking the loss. He struck out six batters, walked three and hit another batter. Peryea, who played center field Wednesday, is NAC’s other senior who played his last high school game.

“They are my two all-stars,” LaBarge said. “I’ve coached both Brett and Cody for four years and I wouldn’t trade them. They’ve been on varsity for four years, they won a couple championships, they knew we were going to have a very young team this season, but they still came out and still gave 100 percent.”

Monday’s championship final will take place at Chip Cummings Field with the opening pitch slated for 4:30 p.m. Ticonderoga swept Lake Placid in the two meetings during the regular season, including a 7-2 victory on May 9.

The Blue Bombers enter the final as a big underdog against essentially the same Sentinels squad that marched all the way to the state Class C championship game a year ago, where they fell 6-5 in extra innings to Avon. Ticonderoga is currently ranked fourth in the state in Class C and owns a 12-2 record.

In order to have a chance against Ticonderoga, Brandes said his team needs to turn in a similar performance to Wednesday’s effort.

“We have to play very much like we did today,” Brandes said. “It starts with pitching, defense and we have to put the bat on the ball. If it’s strike out, strike out, strike out, we’re in for a tough day. We have to make them field the ball, which they do very well, but if we can do that, it’s going to be a ball game.”