RICHLAND — A trio of Jackson boys tennis players will have a chance to play for state championships Saturday as the 4A state tournament concludes at Hanford High School and Columbia Basin Racquet Club.
Brady Thomas reached the state semifinals in the singles draw, and Anuj Vimawala and Daniel Sohn did the same in the doubles draw during Friday’s first day of action.
Vimawala and Sohn won both of their matches Friday in straight sets, defeating Lewis and Clark’s Max Ellington and Roman Mojito 6-1, 6-0 in the first round before dispatching Akash Prasad and Jake Gianan of Camas 6-3, 6-3 in the quarterfinals.
“So far, we’ve been playing a lot of aggressive tennis, and we’re making sure we hold our serves, fight hard for one of the breaks and try to fight through matches that way,” Vimawala said.
Vimawala and Sohn have been playing regularly at Mill Creek Tennis Club during the seven-month interval between the end of the regular season and the beginning of the state tournament.
“Playing matches against adults helps keep us sharp,” Sohn said.
The Timberwolves’ duo will battle Ryan Cho and Hampus Holmgren of Issaquah in the semifinals Saturday at 8:30 a.m on the outdoor courts at Hanford High School.
“We’ve watched them play a little bit and they seem like really fast, coordinated kids,” Vimawala said. “But we don’t feel as though they’ll be that overpowering. We just need to play some smart tennis and work on playing our game instead of adapting to them.”
Thomas also won a pair of matches Friday to reach Saturday’s semifinal round.
He defeated Gonzaga Prep’s Marcell Scudiero in straight sets in his opening match before advancing past Kentridge’s Francis Viloria via injury default.
Thomas will face Bryan Khoo of Skyline in the semifinals Saturday at 8:30 a.m. If he reaches the final, it would be a 2 p.m. start.
“I’ve played with this kid for a couple years, and I’m going to try to push balls to his weaker side and stay mentally tough,” Thomas said.
2A baseball
YAKIMA — Archbishop Murphy couldn’t capitalize on scoring chances and saw its hope of a state championship disappear with a 3-0 loss to Selah during a 2A state tournament semifinal Friday night in Yakima.
Murphy recorded six hits off Selah starter Dylan Bishop but was shut out for the first time this spring.
The Wildcats (20-6) play Sehome next in a third-fourth place game at 1 p.m. Saturday, May 25, at Yakima County Stadium.
Derek Trobough and Josiah Santiago led Murphy with two hits apiece, and starting pitcher Cole Calnon threw all six innings. The Wildcats ace gave up eight hits and two earned runs with four strikeouts and no walks.
Selah took a 1-0 lead in the third inning when Vikings standout and Vanderbilt University commit Carter Young hit a two-out single off Calnon.
Murphy had a great chance to tie in the top of the fourth. The Wildcats had runners on first and third with one out, but Bishop struck out back-to-back Murphy batters.
Selah added on with more clutch hitting in the bottom of the fourth. Chase Ergeson, the Vikings’ No. 9 hitter, hit a two-out, two-run single that extend Selah’s lead to 3-0.
The Wildcats got a baserunner on in the fifth and sixth innings but couldn’t rally. Murphy went down 1-2-3 in the seventh to end the game.
2A softball
SELAH — Lakewood went 2-1 on Friday at Carlon Park, finishing the day with a13-4 win over Selah in an elimination game, setting up a loser-out contest with Northwest 2A foe Lynden at 10 a.m. Saturday.
The Cougars started the day with a 4-0 loss to Ridgefield, allowing two runs each in the first and sixth innings, but stayed alive by beating White River 1-0 in their first elimination game.
1A/2B/1B track & field
CHENEY — Cedar Park Christian senior Samuel Van Peursem won his second consecutive 1A boys discus title Friday at Eastern Washington University, posting a throw of 181 feet, 2 inches.
That mark was 10 feet beyond his winning throw from last season and over five feet better than that of second-place Michael Perez-Villalobos of Royal on Friday, as well as a personal best.
Also Friday, Mark Riise of Cedar Park Christian-Mountlake Terrace placed fifth in the 1B discus with a throw of 124-4, and Caleb Sanders of Grace Academy placed eighth in the 1B javelin with a throw of 136-1.
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