CENTRALIA — Hoquiam’s roller-coaster softball season will be climaxed with a thrill ride to state.
ReyLynn Dunn drove in the tying run and scored the winning marker on Paige Folkers’ squeeze bunt in the ninth inning as the Grizzlies earned District IV’s third and final state 1A slot by outlasting Elma, 5-4, on Saturday at Centralia’s Fort Borst Park.
Earlier in the day, Hoquiam had topped Forks, 14-7, and Elma had eliminated Castle Rock, 7-4, to set up the ensuing winner-to-state, loser-out showdown.
The Grizzlies, who lost their first four games this season and didn’t post their first victory of this soggy spring until April 18, will take a 10-7 record into the state 1A tourney beginning Friday at Richland.
“We came together as a team and that’s really a big deal,” HHS pitcher English Hyde said. “Nobody expected us to make it to the state tournament. We showed that we were able and we are very, very excited.”
Elma, which had beaten Hoquiam twice in Evergreen 1A League play, concluded its season at 10-5.
Grizzlies 5, Eagles 4 (9 innings)
Hoquiam junior Hyde and Elma freshman Quin Mikel each chose this pressure-filled contest to deliver what may have been their finest pitching performances of the season.
Both were working on one-hitters through six innings. The difference was the Grizzlies used Maddie German’s double, a wild pitch and Dunn’s sacrifice fly in the fourth to take a 1-0 lead into the seventh.
Peyton Elliott doubled to open the Elma half of the inning. But the Grizzlies were one out away from victory in regulation when Hyde retired the next two batters.
Kali Rambo, another Elma freshman, prolonged matters by dunking a bloop single behind first base to score Elliott from third. A scoreless Hoquiam seventh triggered the International Tiebreaker, which is implemented in the eighth inning in postseason competition.
Beginning the eighth inning on second base as per the tiebreaker’s format, Rambo advanced to third on Chloe Velasco’s bunt and scored on an error.
The Eagles added a seemingly vital insurance run on consecutive two-out singles by Kassedy Olson and Molly Johnston to make it 3-1.
The Grizzlies had mustered only one baserunner since the fourth. But Kylee Bagwell suddenly reversed the momentum with a two-run homer — her second of the day and third of the tournament — in the bottom of the eighth that forced another frame.
Again Elma scored in its half of the ninth. Positioned at second to start the inning, Elliott stopped at third on Kaylee Rambo’s single to right. She broke for home when the Grizzlies threw to first on Kali Rambo’s grounder to third and beat the relay to the plate.
Dunn’s solid one-out single in the bottom of the ninth scored Maya Jump from second. Kamimi Papp followed with a single up the middle that sent Dunn to third.
Folkers then dropped a bunt down the third base line. Dunn and a slightly low throw arrived home almost simultaneously and the ball came loose to touch off the Hoquiam victory celebration.
“That was a microcosm of our season,” HHS coach Keith Reynvaan said. “One play here, another play there. But finally it worked out for us. I’m so happy for the kids.”
“We just couldn’t put it away,” Elma coach Roger Elliott reflected with a sad smile. “Like I said before the game, they’re just like us. They’ve got a couple of good hitters, a good pitcher and they’re scrappy. They just got one more than we did.”
Hyde, who had battled periodic control difficulties during the season, didn’t issue a single walk in this one.
Reynvaan was equally impressed with Mikel, who struck out only two but also allowed nary a walk.
“She hits her spots. She throws strikes and her ball moves,” the Hoquiam coach said.
Grizzlies 14, Spartans 7
Finishing the game with 10 unanswered runs, Hoquiam registered one of the more stressful seven-run victories in district history.
Jayden Olson’s three-run homer capped a six-run fourth inning that gave the underdog Spartans a 7-4 lead.
The Grizzlies, however, tied it with three-run bottom of the fourth highlighted by Abbi Spradlin’s run-scoring double.
One inning later, Bagwell launched a two-run homer to give Hoquiam a permanent lead. German contributed her first varsity homer in the sixth, another two-run shot that highlighted a five-run inning.
“We never give up and always give ourselves a chance,” said Reynvaan, a quote he would repeat later in the day.
Hyde helped her own cause in this game with three hits and three RBIs.
Eagles 7, Rockets 4
One swing of the bat changed this contest for Elma. Through the first three innings, the Eagles had stranded two runners in each frame and trailed the Rockets 2-0.
Elma finally found its offense in the fourth inning. With one out, Velasco singled to start the Eagle rally. Mikel reached on a fielder’s choice moments later and Johnston was hit by a pitch to load the bases for Peyton Elliott. The senior watched one pitch float in out of the zone before she unloaded on a ball for her second grand slam of the district tournament. The shot energized and triggered a pitching change by the Rockets.
“The whole game was changed on that one swing,” Roger Elliott said. “(Peyton) has been locked in this whole season, just seeing the ball. She has the most walks on our team. She is pretty much in the zone right now. It seemed like we had runners on all the time we just couldn’t come up with that big hit.”
Castle Rock got a run back in the fifth inning, but the Eagles rallied again in the sixth with Johnston driving in one run and Kali Rambo adding a pair of RBIs on a single.
Brendan Carl contributed to this report
Grizzlies 5, Eagles 4
Elma 000 000 121 — 4 6 1
Hoquiam 000 100 022 — 5 4 1
Mikel and Elliott; Hyde and German.
RBI: Elma — Kali Rambo 2, Johnston. Hoquiam — Dunn 2, Bagwell 2, Folkers. Home runs: Hoquiam — Bagwell. Doubles: Elma — Elliott, Velasco. Hoquiam — German.
Winning pitcher — Hyde (walked none; struck out six). Losing pitcher — Mikel (walked none; struck out two).
Grizzlies 14, Spartans 7
Forks 010 600 0 — 7 7 7
Hoquiam 022 325 x — 14 11 1
Dean, Olson (6) and Peters; Hyde and German.
RBI: Forks — Olson 3, Brandt, Kratzer. Hoquiam — Hyde 3, Bagwell 3, German 2, Dunn, Folkers, Spradlin. Three hits: Hoquiam — Hyde. Two hits: Forks — Peters. Hoquiam — Folkers, Bagwell. Home runs: Forks — Olson. Hoquiam — Bagwell, German. Doubles: Forks — Peters. Hoquiam — Hyde, Spradlin.
Winning pitcher — Hyde (walked three; struck out 11). Losing pitcher — Dean (walked one; struck out four).
