PREP SOFTBALL: Jackson ties for 3rd place

Published 11:44 pm Saturday, May 29, 2010

TACOMA — The day started with much promise for the three teams representing Wesco in the Class 4A state softball tournament

The two-day tournament had to be condensed into Saturday after rain washed out Friday’s entire slate of games, creating a softball marathon that began at 10 a.m. at SERA Fields in Tacoma. Right off the bat, Jackson and Marysville-Pilchuck, the top two finishers in District 1, each rolled to easy 11-1 first-round victories.

Not long after that, Stanwood, Wesco’s third qualifier, made it 3-for-3 for the conference after winning 4-1 behind Brittany Jeans’ 17-strikeout performance.

Just like that, three teams in the final eight hailed from Snohomish County.

Then it all fell apart in the quarterfinals. Marysville-Pilchuck built a three-run lead, only to yield five runs in the sixth in a 5-3 loss to Kelso. Not long after, both Stanwood and Jackson played quarterfinals on neighboring fields, setting up the possibility of a Wesco North vs. South semifinal. Instead, Jackson, one of the tournament favorites, fell to Heritage 3-0. Moments later, Walla Walla’s Hope Klicker ended Stanwood’s title hopes with a 3-0 no-hitter.

“We just didn’t come out firing on all pistons, we just didn’t click,” Spartans coach Cherlyn Schander said. “… Once we fought our way through district to get here, the goal was to win. You come here, the goal is four games.”

No team was more disappointed than the Timberwolves, who came into the state tournament with a 23-0 record and a No. 1 ranking in the latest Seattle Times poll.

“It sucks,” said Jackson senior pitcher Dani Jackman, fighting back tears after the quarterfinal loss. “It really does … This team is like a family, and it definitely shows on the field, because we know each other so well. It’s a loss, but it’s gonna happen sooner or later. That’s part of the game. A big percentage of softball is failure, and we understand that. It’s just hard to take the first loss of the season here.”

Jackson at least got to end its long day with smiles, bouncing back to beat Richland 8-5 in a consolation game to tie for third place.

“This is awesome for them,” Jackson coach Mike Moran said after the consolation win. “They deserve this. Good for our kids.”

Moran admitted he wasn’t sure how his team would respond to its first loss of the season, but was happy to see his players bounce back with a win.

“I was impressed with that,” he said. “They did a nice job.”

Stanwood and Marysville-Pilchuck weren’t as fortunate, losing their final games of the night, which like Jackson’s consolation game were cut to five innings because of time constraints. Stanwood fell 3-2 to Rogers of Puyallup, while Marysville-Pilchuck lost 5-2 to Stadium.

“I’ve been to enough of these to know that it’s who is playing the best at the tournament, not who is ranked what by whatever newspaper or poll,” Tomahawks coach KT Allyn said. “It’s who is showing up and performing consistently throughout the day. I’m happy with my team’s performance, I really am. … Our game against Kelso was tough. I thought we took command of that one, but one big inning was the difference.”

Because the tournament was compressed into one day, some of the consolation games had to be cut, meaning the six teams that won two games, aside from the teams in the championship game, finished tied for third.

Herald Writer John Boyle: jboyle@heraldnet.com.