Times Observer Photo by Scott Kindberg Alex Ahlstrom (6) of Dunkirk, N.Y. shares a laugh with umpire Chad Bongiovanni as he comes up to bat during Sunday’s PGCBL West Division game between the Jamestown Tarp Skunks and Geneva Red Wings at Diethrick Park in Jamestown, N.Y.

JAMESTOWN, N.Y. — Presented with an opportunity to play closer to home this summer, Alex Ahlstrom jumped at the chance.

The 2022 Dunkirk High School graduate made his debut with the Jamestown Tarp Skunks in a Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League West Division game Sunday afternoon against the Geneva Red Wings.

“He reached out a little bit late to me this year so there wasn’t necessarily a spot when we had eight outfielders out there,” Jamestown manager Jordan Basile said prior to Monday’s home game against the Batavia Muckdogs. “With Matthew Best (Patrick Henry Community College/University of Maryland Baltimore County) going down and Brayden Johnson (Western Kentucky University) leaving with an injury, I picked up the phone and called Alex. I’m happy to have him in Jamestown and Chautauqua County.”

“Coach Basile knew I was more than willing to play,” Ahlstrom said prior to Monday’s game. “He reached out and we put it together.”

Ahlstrom went 0 for 1 with a pair of walks and a strikeout while also handling two fly balls in left field Sunday for Jamestown at Diethrick Park, but was not in the lineup for Monday’s game.

“I’m a hometown kid in front of the hometown crowd,” Ahlstrom said. “It doesn’t get any better than that.”

Jamestown is a whole lot closer to his Dunkirk home than his previous stop this summer where he was driving nearly two hours to play.

“It’s a good opportunity for him to play in Chautauqua County. At the same time, on my side of things, there are a lot of connections,” Basile said. “You see a lot of familiar faces at the park. He has family connections that live in Jamestown so it kind of brings it all together.”

Ahlstrom was a 2021 Post-Journal/OBSERVER All-Star as a junior at Dunkirk where he hit .492 with two home runs, three triples and three doubles. He also drove in 18 runs and scored 36 while stealing 20 bases for the Marauders.

Basile and Ahlstrom discussed collegiate opportunities during Ahlstrom’s high school years when Basile was at Jamestown Community College and later Fredonia State University, but Ahlstrom already had designs on attending Finger Lakes Community College.

“I had talked to Alex when I was coaching at JCC,” Basile said, “but at that point he was already committed to going to Finger Lakes.”

During his senior season, the right-handed hitting outfielder played in just nine games and hit .385 with a double, six RBIs and five runs scored.

Ahlstrom then took his talents to Finger Lakes CC. As a freshman this past season, he hit .321 with six doubles, two triples and five home runs. Ahlstrom drove in 30 runs and scored 35 in 39 games.

“It was a pretty good year. It was a 40-win season and we lost in the playoffs to the reigning national champions. Overall, it was a good season,” Ahlstrom said of his first spring with the Lakers. “I hope to get more reps, more time and have some fun here while we’re at it.”

He plans to return to Finger Lakes CC this fall to finish his two-year degree before continuing on to a four-year school.

“The goal is to win as many games as possible and hoist up a big trophy at the end of it,” Ahlstrom said. “After that, move on to a four-year school and have the same goals there.”