It had been almost 20 days since Timpanogos ace Gentry Croft last pitched in a meaningful baseball game. Alta wishes he would've waited one more.

The senior pitcher threw 4 1/3 quality innings, giving up only one earned run while striking out six. Croft also provided Timpanogos with an emotional lift that may have been just as important as his strong pitching effort.

"I'm really proud of Gentry," said Timpanogos coach Kim Nelson. "I think just to have him there was a confidence booster to everybody else. And he did well."

With Croft back to doing his thing on the mound, it didn't take long for the T'Wolf offense to start doing its job. Mitch Foster continued his recent tear by smashing a single to left to open the top of the second. Rhett Nelson, Jordan Mehlhoff, Christian Stewart, Kellen McWhorter and Jordan Cooper followed with singles to open up a 5-0 lead. The key hits of the inning were two-RBI shots from Stewart and Coooper.

"I really think that everybody was really pumped up to play with Gentry pitching," Stewart said. "Then we just came out strong."

The hit parade continued into the top of the third. Nelson opened with a double. Mehlhoff drilled his second hit of the day and Stewart followed with an RBI single into the hole on the right side on a hit-and-run. Taylor Lyons capped off the inning with a double down the right-field line. In all, Timpanogos produced 10 hits over the second and third innings to take a commanding 7-1 lead.

"Just happy with the way we're swinging the bat," Nelson said after his team put up 19 runs over their first two playoff games. "It's a couple guys who haven't had as much success as some of the others who really have had two good games in a row. We've got more guys in the lineup who are making those contributions."

Not only are more guys in the lineup making contributions, but now the T'Wolves are starting to get pitching help from someone other than Nelson. With Croft's return, Timpanogos goes back to having as good of a 1-2 pitching punch as any team in the state, something coach Nelson points out is crucial at this time of year.

"The way that this tournament is set up in the winner's bracket, two good pitchers throwing well will take you deep into the tournament, no question," Nelson said.

The T'Wolves are happy to have Croft back and the pitcher is thrilled to be back as well after his brief hiatas.

"It was killing me those two weeks," he said.

In addition to having their top two pitchers back on the mound, the T'Wolves are also getting help from Tanner Wolfe and Devin Olsen. Wolfe came into the game in the bottom of the fifth and baffled the Hawks for a couple innings, before Olsen came on to record the game's final out.

Although Timpanogos was held to only two hits over the final four innings, the T'Wolves did more than enough damage early on for that not to be a factor. Stewart led the offense by going 3-for-4 with a double and three RBI. Nelson and Mehlhoff also had a pair of hits.

For many of the T'Wolves, the win had some extra meaning considering it came just a few hundred feet away from where their football season ended in the fall in a 35-28 loss to the eventual state champions.

"We talked about that," Stewart said. "All the football players were talking about getting them back and taking them out like they did to us. I think that's also part of the reason we were so pumped up early on."

By winning their first two games, the T'Wolves set themselves up nicely as one of four remaining unbeatens in the 5A tournament, a position they are happy to be in.

"There's just a good feeling," coach Nelson said. "Just good, positive things going on. I'm happy with where we're at and our chances from here."

Stewart added, "This really is the best we've played all season. We're peaking at the right time and everyone's really pumped up and the atmosphere is way good. We know we can win state and now we have a good chance to do it."

Timpanogos (19-5) moves on to play Bingham (16-8) on Tuesday at UVSC. The game is scheduled to start at 4:30 p.m.

Timpanogos 052 000 0 -- 7 12 1

Alta 010 010 1 -- 3 6 1

Croft, Wolfe (5), Olsen (7) and Foster. Brown and Court. WP-Croft. 2B-Lyons (T), Stewart (T), Nelson (T).