SNOHOMISH — Chalk another one up to the hill.
In a tight Wesco North baseball game, the deciding factor was as much a piece of topography as any of the players in Snohomish’s 4-2 win over Marysville-Pilchuck Tuesday.
With two outs and a runner on second base in the fifth inning, the Panthers’ Russell Crippen roped a shot deep to right where Earl Torgeson Field slopes suddenly and severely up to the outfield fence that has no warning track. The Tomahawks’ Adam Sylvester backed up to get under Crippen’s blast, but the steep grade crossed him up and he dropped what would have been the final out of the inning, allowing Mike Kilpatrick to score what proved to be the game-winning run.
It’s not the first time Snohomish coach Kim Hammons has seen that part of the field come into play.
“Over the years I’ve watched so many face plants and back plants and balls misplayed on the hill,” Hammons said. “Our guys practice out there. So, yeah that was the game winner right there. The hill won it for us.”
The hill and Grant Gunning.
The Panthers’ ace, headed for Seattle University on a baseball scholarship next year, improved his record to 3-0 on the season with a complete game. Gunning also batted 3-for-3 on the day, including an RBI single that immediately followed the hill debacle.
The big right-hander allowed only a pair of hits and a walk his first six innings without allowing a run.
“Grant has pitched well,” Hammons said. “He looked very good. He threw a lot of first-pitch strikes.”
M-P’s Jake Thomas pitched as strong if not better than Gunning, but the extra outs left on the field by his defense, caused the lefty to surrender four unearned runs and take the loss. Thomas fanned six batters and walked two over 41/3 innings.
It took until the seventh for the Tommies’ bats to get to Gunning.
John Naff, who was 2-for-3 with a double on the day, laced a leadoff single to right. After a fly out to center, Brandon Dormaier socked a two-run home run to left center to account for the games only earned runs.
Joe Morgan then singled, bringing the tying run to the plate. The ensuing at bat by Tyler Thompson was prolonged by two foul outs that ricocheted off the glove of Crippen, the Snohomish third baseman. Thompson battled, but eventually went down swinging as Gunning tallied the last of his four strikeouts and pumped his fist in celebration. A weak groundout to second ended the game.
Gunning didn’t let the mistakes in the field affect his approach and he baffled Thompson with an off-speed pitch.
“What you gotta do is just flush it out of your mind and focus on the next pitch. From pitch to pitch you can’t remember your last one,” Gunning said. “That’s how I like to do it.
“My changeup was working all game. It’s kind of my out pitch. I like to go to that in a big situation like that.”
The win is the first in the three-game series among teams battling for playoff spots in the Wesco North. The Panthers realize that they played well, but also that only a few M-P mistakes were the difference.
“I have plenty of gray hairs and they almost gave me more,” Hammons said. “We made less mistakes until the last inning. We tried to catch up.”
The two teams will play again today this time at Marysville and the Panthers will be looking to secure the all-important series win.
“It would mean a lot,” Gunning said. “(M-P) is a great team. They were one of the best teams in the league last year and obviously they are still good this year, so winning the series would be huge for our team to make it to the playoffs.”
At Snohomish H.S.
Marysville-Pilchuck 000 000 2 — 2 5 4
Snohomish 002 020 x — 4 8 2
Jake Thomas, Zach Williams (5), and Kyle Nobach. Grant Gunning and Jake Taubenheim WP–Gunning (3-0). LP–Thomas. 2B–John Naff (M) 1, Tanner Arrington (S) 1, HR–Brandon Dormaier (M) 1 1. Records–Marysville-Pilchuck 2-2 league, 6-2 overall. Snohomish 3-1, 5-4.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
