Sometimes, a positive attitude can be an athlete’s most dangerous weapon. The Cedar Rapids Washington baseball team felt the full force of that weapon on Thursday night.

Jefferson’s Chance Tiedtke, who had been experiencing trouble at the plate, came to bat in the bottom of the seventh inning with two outs and his team trailing by one run.

Tiedtke proceeded to rip a walk-off single down the third base line to score runners from second and third to give Jefferson a 5-4 victory over Washington at home.

“I had been down the whole game because I haven’t been hitting that well,” said Tiedtke. “So I was just trying to stay positive. I could hear my teammates just telling me to stay positive, so I just tried to put the ball in play and do whatever I could for my team.”

Jefferson struggled at the plate most of the night, but Tiedtke came up big when it counted.

“Chance has been frustrated the last game or two, and we told him to just relax up there,” said Jefferson Coach Mike Kuba. “He did a nice job of waiting for that strike and just being aggressive up there.”

So with one swing of his bat, Tiedtke moved the positivity-infused J-Hawks to a 2-and-5 record and secured bragging rights over their cross-town rivals for one night. They meet again Friday night at Washington.

Jefferson trailed nearly all game, but never threw in the towel. Washington jumped out to a quick lead in the first inning when Robert Hogg belted an RBI single to left field, scoring pitcher Grant Dostal. And in the third inning, Jacob Rogers collected an RBI single, putting the Warriors ahead 2-0.

With Dostal on the mound, it looked like that was all the Warriors would need. He mowed through the J-Hawk lineup the first three innings and didn’t allow a hit until the fourth.

But in the fourth, the J-Hawks showed signs of life. Christian Knox broke up Dostal’s no-hitter with a single and was moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Austin Goodell. The next batter was Jordan Dee, and he hit a grounder up the middle that the shortstop booted and Knox wheeled all the way from second for the score.

In the fifth, Washington tried to push the game out of reach. Catcher Will Rings knocked an RBI double that scored Rogers. The next batter was Dostal, and he traded places with Rings, ripping an RBI double down the right field line and making the score 4-1.

“I like that we didn’t flip the switch, mentally we were competing for seven innings,” said Kuba. “We kept hanging around and we struck when we had to. It was a nice ballgame for us.”

Jefferson did its striking in the sixth, and even though its bats weren’t working, they manufactured runs.

After two walks, Jefferson baserunners Dee and Tiedtke executed a double steal, landing them at second and third. Sam Techau stepped up to the plate and hit a sacrifice fly to left field to score Dee, making it 4-2.

After a walk to Ky Kramer, Dylan Wright put the ball in play to the shortstop, but a throw to first sailed over the first baseman’s head, which allowed Kramer to score pulling the J-Hawks within 4-3.

Jefferson held in the top of the seventh, and that set the stage for Tiedtke’s heroics.

“We knew that we would have to put pressure on this team and be aggressive on the bases,” said Kuba.

“We made up for not hitting in other ways, especially at the end of the game.”

The J-Hawks mustered only three hits on the night, but the most important one proved to be the game winner. “Once we put seven innings together, we are a good team,” said Tiedtke. “If we stay positive and keep focused, we will be hard to beat.”

WASHINGTON (4)

Dostal, p, 1 1 1 1, Hogg, ss, 2 0 1 1, Christensen, ss, 1 0 0 0, Hampsher, ss, 0 0 0 0, Puk, 1b, 2 1 0 0, Burdt, rf, 3 0 0 0, Gillis, 3b, 3 0 0 0, Troendle, cf, 4 0 0 0, Rogers, 2b, 3 1 2 1, Rings, c, 3 1 1 1, Hand, lf, 2 0 1 0. Totals  24 4 6 4.

JEFFERSON (5)

Jellison, 2b, 4 0 1 0, Knox, cf, 4 1 1 0, Goodell, p, 3 1 0 0, Dee, 1b, 2 2 0 0, Tiedtke, lf, 3 0 1 2, Techau, 3b, 2 0 0 1, Kramer, ss, 1 1 0 0, Sullivan, rf, 2 0 0 0, Wright, p, 1 0 0 0, Jourdan, c, 2 0 0 0. Totals 24 5 3 3.

Dostal, Harrington (5) and Rings. Goodell, Wright (4) and Jourdan. W - Harrington. L - Wright. 2B - Dostal, Rings. SB - Dee (2), Tiedtke.