Wednesday’s Schedule: 5 p.m. — Issaquah vs. South Kitsap Western. 7:15 p.m. — Mill Creek vs. Larch Mountain.
Thursday’s Schedule: 5 p.m. — Winner of Tuesday’s loser-out games. 7:15 p.m. — West Valley vs. North Bothell (loser out).
It was a rough Monday night for the two Vancouver-area teams at the Washington State 8-10 Baseball Tournament at Failor Field in Aberdeen.
In loser-out games, both Hazel Dell and Camas were eliminated from the tournament. In the first game of the evening, West Valley limited Hazel Dell to just one brief power inning en route to a 6-3 victory. In the nightcap, North Bothell never trailed as it took advantage of walks and scoring opportunities for a 10-3 victory.
On Thursday, West Valley and North Bothell will face each other in another loser-out contest at 7:15 p.m. Tuesday’s loser-out contests between Pac West-Sedro Woolley and Walla Walla-Soundview were played after press time and will be posted online Tuesday night. The winners of Tuesday’s loser-out games will face each other in the first game of the day on Thursday.
Wednesday’s games are winner’s bracket semifinal contests, with the winners moving into the winner’s bracket final on Saturday. The losers will face the winner of Thursday’s loser-out contests on Friday.
West Valley 6, Hazel Dell 3
West Valley of Yakima took advantage of its scoring chances throughout this loser-out contest with Hazel Dell, starting in the first inning. Parlaying two lead-off hits, including a lead-off double by Landen Birley, West Valley took a 1-0 lead in the first. An infield throwing error allowed Birley to score the game’s opening run.
In the second, West Valley patiently loaded the bases on walks against Hazel Dell starting pitcher Kaden Hamlin and got one run across on a two-out, bases loaded walk. One at-bat later, Parker Mills’ two-run double to left-center field made it 4-0.
West Valley starting pitcher Brandt Kneisler cruised through the first two innings but didn’t last the third. Treynor Cleeland’s two-run home run to left-center field put Hazel Dell on the scoreboard with one out. Relief pitcher Connor Speer came in and gave up a sacrifice fly RBI to Harrison Hoffarth that trimmed the lead to 4-3.
Speer got a strikeout to end the frame and combined with teammate Josh Sosa on the mound to limit Hazel Dell to just two hits for the remainder of the contest.
With Speer and Sosa in control, West Valley added solo insurance runs in the fourth and fifth innings — RBI singles from Sosa — to close out the game.
North Bothell 10, Camas 3
Despite a four-run sixth inning that put the game away, North Bothell had to fight off Camas for most of this contest.
Camas, which never led, stranded eight runners on base in the contest, six of them in scoring position. North Bothell pitchers Dominic Wilson, Jack Cochran and Trae Silva combined for a five-hitter on the mound.
North Bothell stranded nine runners on base as well but got key hits to push runs across. Kody Moyer’s two-out, RBI double in the second inning opening the scoring for Bothell. Wilson’s RBI triple and Nolan Ledoux’s RBI single in the third made it 3-0. Camas got two runs in the bottom of the third on an RBI fielder’s choice by Anthony Forner and a wild pitch at 3-2.
A two-out RBI single by Silva and a fielder’s interference call at third base moved two runs across for North Bothell in the fourth inning at 5-2 and a wild pitch allowed one run to score at 6-2 in the fifth. Camas gave everything for a big rally in the fifth, loading the bases off Cochran with no outs. Silva came in and hit Beau Harlon for an RBI to keep the bases loaded. Then, Silva got a strikeout, a fielder’s choice out at the plate and another strikeout to end the threat at 6-3.
In the top of the sixth, North Bothell iced the game with a four-run frame, highlighted by Jayden Salman’s two-run double to left-center field. Moyer added an RBI single and one more run came across on a delayed run on an infield bunt single.
