Cascade honors a former player in its win over Jackson

EVERETT — Walk-off victories are always special, but this one carried extra meaning for the Cascade baseball team.

With the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning, Nicholas Klemp drew a full-count walk to give the Bruins a 7-6 walk-off win over visiting Jackson in a Wesco 4A rivalry game Wednesday afternoon.

The dramatic victory came in Cascade’s annual tribute game for the late Michael Alcayaga, a former player who died four years ago at age 16 after battling leukemia.

“He’s probably the reason that we won out here today,” Klemp said.

The Bruins held a pregame ceremony to honor Alcayaga, whose triplet sisters Amanda, Brooke and Courtney threw out ceremonial first pitches. Cascade wore orange socks and undershirts in honor of Alcayaga and leukemia awareness.

“It’s just a really special day and it means a lot to us,” Bruins coach David Benson said. “But to also come out with a win, it’s that much more special.”

With the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the seventh, Nicholas Klemp drew a full-count walk to give Cascade a 7-6 walk-off win over rival Jackson. pic.twitter.com/iWKewuqm4S

— Cameron Van Til (@CameronVanTil) April 12, 2018

The walk-off walk was a fitting end to a game that featured a combined 21 walks and just nine total hits, as both teams struggled to throw strikes in the cold, drizzly weather. Jackson walked 13 batters and Cascade walked eight.

The Bruins (8-2 overall, 4-1 Wesco 4A) had just four hits, just two of which left the infield.

“We just couldn’t find the plate,” Timberwolves coach Kirk Nicholson said.

Trailing 6-4 in the bottom of the sixth, Cascade drew five walks — including a pair of bases-loaded walks that tied the game.

Then after Bruins reliever Carson Metcalfe worked a 1-2-3 top of the seventh, Cascade junior Benjamin Hansen led off the bottom of the frame with an infield single, beating out a slow-roller to shortstop to put the winning run aboard.

After a sacrifice bunt and back-to-back walks that loaded the bases, Jackson (6-4, 3-2) got a force out at home plate for the inning’s second out.

Klemp, the ensuing batter, then worked the count to 3-2 before laying off an outside pitch to bring home Metcalfe for the winning run. The Bruins stormed out of the dugout and mobbed Klemp at first base in celebration of the win.

“Nich’s a great player,” Benson said. “He’s worked very hard to get to where he’s at. … Nich’s one of those guys (who when) you see him walking up there, you have a feeling he’s going to get the job done.”

As the Bruins were milling around the dugout afterward, a few teammates celebrated by dumping a bucket of ice on Klemp’s head.

“It (felt) good, especially after a win like that,” he said.

Jackson drew four walks in the top of the first while pushing across two runs.

In the bottom of the first, Cascade sophomore Brock Gillis lofted a two-out, two-run triple just inside the left-field foul line. Gillis then scored on an error to give the Bruins an early 3-2 lead.

That remained the score until Jackson’s three-run fifth inning.

Carter Booth reached on a leadoff walk and advanced to third on an Addison Beckman hit-and-run single. Booth then scored on a first-and-third steal and Beckman later scored on a wild pitch to give the Timberwolves a 4-3 lead. Two batters later, Case Matters lined a two-out, run-scoring single into left field to make it 5-3.

Cascade senior Brett Gillis led off the bottom of the fifth with an infield single and advanced to third on a pickoff throw that went out of play. Two batters later, Brock Gillis drove in his brother with a sacrifice fly to right field that trimmed Jackson’s lead to 5-4.

The Timberwolves pushed the lead back to two runs in the top of the sixth, but Cascade rallied for the walk-off win.

The Everett School District rivals are scheduled to conclude their two-game series at 4 p.m. Friday at Jackson High School.