With the bases loaded and the tying run standing on the on-deck circle, Alex Reid threw three straight strikes to end the ball game and send the Langley Blaze back to the provincial championships.

The Blaze scored eight runs in the bottom of the first inning and never looked back, doubling the visiting Nanaimo Pirates 10-5 on Sunday afternoon at McLeod Park.

The two U18 baseball teams were playing the third and deciding game of their playoff series to see which team would advance to the B.C. Premier Baseball League’s final four championships next weekend.

Had Nanaimo won, it would have been a shocking upset as Langley was tops in the regular season, going 37-11 while Nanaimo (19-29) had to win a one-game playoff on Thursday to qualify for the eighth and final post-season spot.

“The guys were playing tired,” admitted Blaze coach Doug Mathieson.

“It is a long season and it is starting to show.”

The team was plagued by inconsistent play in the field, committing two errors on Sunday, and five for the weekend.

In Saturday’s first two games, the Blaze struck first, winning game one 1-0 in a pitcher’s duel between Langley’s Zak Miller and Nanaimo’s Cody Chartrand.

Both pitchers went the distance, allowing three hits apiece, and striking out nine and six batters, respectively.

The only difference was an RBI single from the Blaze’s Kyle Turner in the third inning.

But Nanaimo staved off elimination thanks to a 4-3 victory in the rematch.

Nanaimo led 4-1 after three innings and held on for the one-run victory.

The Pirates won the game despite getting out-hit 8-3 as they were able to take advantage of two Langley errors.

Ryan Stajduhar and Kellin Deglan each had a sacrifice fly to score the first two runs, and Turner had the third RBI.

The Pirates got a quick lead in Sunday’s decisive game three, potting a run in the top half of the first inning.

But Langley quickly responded, going through their entire batting order in the first inning.

When the dust had settled, the team had chased Nanaimo’s starting pitcher and scored eight runs.

“Having the lead was big,” said Blaze first-baseman Preston Carlile.

“Nanaimo had a few chances to get back in it, but they couldn’t clutch up.”

The Pirates would chip away at the lead, putting runners on base in each of the seven innings.

But they were limited to just a single run in the first, third, fourth, sixth and seventh innings.

The Blaze added insurance runs in both the bottom of the fifth and sixth innings.

Mike Monster earned the win on the mound for Langley, pitching four solid innings. He was replaced in the fifth, with his team up 8-3, by Alex Reid, who came on with two runners on board and just one out in the fifth.

But Deglan threw out an attempted base steal at third base and Reid then struck out the Nanaimo batter to end the threat.

Turner had three base hits, two RBIs and a run, while Tyler Barlow drove in one and scored twice, to go along with his two base hits. Olson (two hits, RBI, run), Deglan (one hits, one RBI, two runs) and Jeremy Filipek had the other Blaze hits.

Afterwards, the players admitted they need to play better.

“It wasn’t our best game,” Deglan said.

“We did just enough to get the win.”

Deglan knows the team has to stop committing unforced errors.

“Our defence wasn’t as good as it needs to be,” Deglan said.

“(But) we got some timely hits to score some guys.”

The provincial championships begin on Friday and run through until Sunday at McLeod Park.

Langley enters the four-team tournament as the top team.

Also in the field are the North Delta Blue Jays, North Shore Twins and the Fraser Valley Chiefs.

Langley plays Fraser Valley on Friday at 3:30 p.m. On Saturday they face North Shore at 12:30 p.m. and North Delta at 5:30 p.m.

The top two teams after the round robin portion of the tournament will square off for the gold medal game on Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m.

Langley is looking for their third provincial banner in the past five seasons.