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Orem • Chase Merrell continued to swing, and he continued to miss. He couldn't buy a hit for Pleasant Grove. In his four at-bats, he struck out three times. He reflected his performance after the Vikings lost the first game of the championship series on Friday.

"Just leave it all out there. I've got nothing to lose," Merrell said of his mindset heading into the decisive second game. "Just go hit the crap out of the ball."

And that's exactly what he did.

Merrell redeemed himself with four RBIs to power Pleasant Grove past the Miners, 6-2, for the program's first championship since 1998 at Brent Brown Ballpark.

"We had a lot of tears," said Pleasant Grove coach Darrin Henry. "I said, 'If I told you three months ago we had a chance to win a state championship in the second game, would you take it?' All of a sudden, they started getting motivated and ready to go."

It marked the culmination of an entire year fueled by heartbreak after Pleasant Grove (27-3) fell short of the title in the second game of the championship series against Jordan last year. Billed as the preseason favorite after bringing back numerous contributors, the program climbed to unprecedented heights — reaching as high as No. 6 in national polls.

"We accepted it, and we embraced it," Henry said.

Bingham forced the second game with an 8-7 victory for its sixth consecutive elimination-game win. The Miners established a six-run lead in the fourth inning, with contributions from Kade Cloward (two RBI doubles), Aaron Marsh (two RBI singles), Cody Kitchen and Tyler Zupon, while four Pleasant Grove errors aided the effort.

It marked the first loss for Pleasant Grove ace Easton Walker (8-1) in two years, breaking his 17-game streak. It was the third time in his career he allowed double-digit hits (10).

"We tried to do a little bit of something we're not capable of — tried to go a little bit too hard," Walker said. "Second game, we started to get back under ourselves, started to refocus. [We] played our game."

The Miners (29-5) struck first in the second game, scoring on a wild pitch and an RBI groundout by Braydan Diddle in the second inning. Merrell's RBI single trimmed the fat to one in the fourth.

With runners on second and third in the fifth, Payton Henry, who went 4 for 4 at the plate, uncorked a double into left center to furnish the Vikings' first lead, 3-2. Two batters later, Merrell replicated a two-run double of his own.

Darrin Henry entrusted the mound to his son with the late-inning lead. The junior — more known for his powerful approach at the plate — used the same mentality pitching.

"Bulldog up. Be a bulldog and win it," said Payton Henry, who noted he threw fastballs on all but two pitches. "I love closing games."

After securing the final out, before scattering into the masses, the Vikings huddled together behind home plate, chanting: "Light the G" in unison — a tradition at Pleasant Grove of brightening the hillside letter after every state championship.

And for the first time in 17 years, that G will glow.

Twitter: @trevorphibbs —

Pleasant Grove 6, Bingham 2

R Pleasant Grove wins its first state title since 1998 in the second game of the championship series.

• Chase Merrell goes 2 for 3 at the plate with four RBIs for the Vikings.

• Payton Henry drives in two runs on four hits.