YAKIMA — The high-powered Ocosta offense took little time to get warmed up on Friday as the Wildcats scored 11 runs in the first inning en route to a 14-6 opening-round win over Friday Harbor in the 2B State Championship Tournament on Friday at the Gateway Sports Complex.
Ocosta’s Kristi Raffelson opened the scoring with a two-run single that seemingly opened the floodgates. In the Wildcats’ double-digit opening frame, they had six hits, drew four walks and benefited from two hit batters and a pair of Friday Harbor errors.
Down 13-1 in the fourth inning, Friday Harbor scored five runs to keep the game from becoming a mercy-rule shortened win for the Wildcats.
Erika Snider earned the win for Ocosta, allowing two earned runs on eight hits with nine strikeouts and a pair of walks.
Ocosta (21-6 overall) then defeated Colfax, 11-8, to advance to the state semifinals against Napavine at noon today.
Down 3-0 in the third, the Wildcats scored five runs to take the lead, four of those runs coming off of two-run home runs by Kjirstin Hopfer and Erika Snider.
The Wildcats offense proceeded to put pressure on Colfax pitching by scoring a pair of runs in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings.
Hopfer went 3-for-4 with a double, the two-run home run and four RBI to lead the Wildcats.
Pe Ell-Willapa Valley suffers loss in second round
The Titans made quick work of Orcas Island with a 12-0 win in the first round of the 2B State Tournament on Friday in Yakima, but their hopes of a 2B state title were dashed with an 8-4 loss to Northwest Christian in the second round of the 2B State Championship Tournament.
PWV (20-4) faces Brewster at 10 a.m. today in the consolation bracket.
Wishkah Valley eliminated in 1B tourney
The Loggerettes trip to the state tournament ended abruptly with two blowout losses in the 1B State Championship Tournament on Friday in Yakima.
After suffering a 15-1 loss to Colton in the opening round, the Loggerettes fell behind to Rainier Christian and never recovered, losing 21-9 to end their season.
Golf
Hoquiam boys place third in state
SPOKANE – Hoquiam boys golf capped off its season with a third-place finish at the state golf tournament at the Liberty Lake Golf Course on Wednesday in Spokane.
Bear Creek School took home the title with 88 points and was followed closely by Seattle Academy who had 85.5. Hoquiam was awarded 61 points for its efforts to put them ahead of Newport High School that had 54 points.
The Grizzlies’ Josh Burger led the way on the par-70 course with a score of 78 on the second day of competition. Dayton Braden shaved eight strokes off of Tuesday’s score to finish his round with an 80. Ryan Cole had another solid day on the links with an 83 and Tatye Witherby rounded things out with a 94.
Hoquiam head coach Larry Dublanko said Burger was consistent throughout his round.
“Josh played pretty steady and got around most of the dangerous parts of the golf course,” he said. “He got around the water on the front nine and played solidly all the way through the back nine.”
Cole ended up with the second-lowest Hoquiam score but struggled on the first hole, whe ninth hole, which Dublanko stated was a big help to his score.
The head coach added that he’s proud of the way his team performed and thinks his program is headed in the right direction after consecutive third-place state finishes.
“I was very pleased with our performance. That’s the second year in a row we’ve taken third and that’s a pretty good accomplishment for this golf team,” he said. “We’ve had a good season. We won districts and took third at state and it says a lot about the character of our team.”
Sports Briefs
Senior All-Star baseball game on Wednesday
The 41st Annual Senior All-Star Game will take place at 4 p.m. Wednesday at Ed Wheeler Field in Centralia.
Tickets for the nine-inning game at $5 for adults and $3 for children and senior citizens.
A total of 17 high schools will be represented at the game, which will feature local players Austin Timmons of Aberdeen and Montesano High School’s Matt Plato and Nate Kloempken.
Beach volleyball tournament comes to Seabrook
The 3rd Annual AVA Beach Volleyball Tournament returns to the beaches of Seabrook June 15-17.
The event features approximately 100 teams competing on 20 courts and entry is open to anyone of any skill level.
Cash prizes will be up for grabs in multiple men’s and women’s divisions.
The event is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. on Friday, June 15 at 225 Front Street in Pacific Beach.
For more information, visit https://www.seabrookwa.com/events/seabrook-town-events/ava-beach-volleyball-tournament.
