The Elks (12-1, 11-1) capped their championship season in dramatic fashion when they rallied to defeat Nichirin 6-5 in five innings on Tuesday night in their final game of the year to claim their 10th straight victory.

Having narrowly lost three times to the Elks this season, Nichirin (7-6, 7-5) appeared they would finally get the better of the 2013 champs and held a 5-2 lead through the first four and a half innings of play.

The Elks, however, once again found a way to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat against Nichirin, as they crossed home plate four times in the bottom of the fifth to seize a 6-5 lead before the game's time limit expired.

Few hits

Despite their late offensive surge, the Elks finished with only four hits and two walks overall, but were aided by three Nichirin errors, which led to three of their six runs. Ben Taylor doubled and drove in three runs to account for the Elks' lone extra base hit of the contest, while starting pitcher Wilson Limbaugh, J.D. Crabtree, and Nate Thomason all singled.

Elk relief pitcher Jay Lyons picked up the win on the mound and did not allow a hit or a walk in two-thirds of an inning of work. Limbaugh had to settle for the no decision after yielding five runs on three hits and four walks over four and a third innings.

Madison Peete paced Nichirin's offense by going 2-for-2 with a walk, a triple, a RBI, and a run scored, while Jacob Autry added a hit and a RBI. Nichirin starting hurler Josh McKnight went the distance on the mound and suffered the loss.

Scoring starts

Both teams left a runner in scoring position in the first inning before Nichirin grabbed a 1-0 lead in the top of the second when Tata Davis raced home on a wild pitch after being hit by a pitch and advancing to third on passed ball and a Hunter Bradford groundout.

In the top of the third, Nichirin pushed across two runs to extend their lead to 3-0. After being hit by a pitch, Denver Kelly advanced to third on a passed ball and a wild pitch. Peete then laced a RBI triple into the right centerfield gap prior to scoring on a wild pitch.

Elks power up

The Elks got their offense in gear in the bottom of the third and plated two runs in the frame to cut the deficit to 3-2. Following a leadoff walk by Limbaugh, Crabtree reached base on a bloop single to put men on first and second with no outs. Limbaugh and Crabtree then pulled off a successful double steal before Taylor and Will Johnson delivered consecutive RBI groundouts.

Nichirin mounted an immediate response and tallied a run in the top of the fourth to stretch their lead to 4-2. Davis drew a walk and advanced to second on a wild pitch before scampering home on a Autry RBI single.

McKnight worked around a two-out single by Thomason in the bottom of the fourth before Nichirin tacked on an insurance run in the top of the fifth thanks to a Levi Hargrove walk and three wild pitches to make it 5-2.

Charging ahead

Things began to unravel for Nichirin in the bottom of the fifth, as Limbaugh reached base on an error and Crabtree was hit by a pitch to put men on first and second with no outs before Taylor belted a two-run double to left field to narrow the gap to 5-4. After advancing to third on a groundout by Johnson, Taylor scored on an error to tie the game at 5-5 while Derrick McKnight reached first base on the play. Derrick McKnight then stole second and advanced to third on a Nichirin throwing error before sprinting home on a wild pitch to give the Elks' the 6-5 victory.