EVERETT – After a five-year absence, the Snohomish Panthers baseball team is thrilled to return to state.
Snohomish turned a one-run deficit into a four-run lead with five runs in the top of the sixth inning, and reliever Dylan Wood pitched 61/3 solid innings to propel the Panthers to a 9-5 victory over Cascade Saturday in the Class 4A District 1 third-place (winner-to-state, loser-out) game at Everett Memorial Stadium.
Kevin Rodland doubled twice and scored two runs for Snohomish and Nick Hammons had a two-run single during the decisive sixth-inning outburst, the lone hit of the mistake-fueled rally. The Panthers (18-5 overall) play Hudson’s Bay at 11 a.m., May 20 in a first-round state tourney game at Heidelberg Park in Tacoma. Snohomish last made state in 2001.
“It’s gonna be a great game, no matter what,” said Rodland, a University of Arizona recruit.
Rodland praised Wood (5-3), a left-hander who entered the game with two outs in the bottom of the first inning and Snohomish trailing 2-0. In a difficult situation, Wood settled in and went on to allow three runs on five hits the rest of the way.
“He’s a senior,” Rodland said, “and he stepped it up.”
“I’ve got a lot of confidence,” Wood said, “because I’ve been doing really well this year. (And) I had a lot of confidence that my team would score some runs.” David Amberson (three runs batted in), Mike Stone (two RBI) and Steve Souza led Cascade (18-5), which finished fourth in the state last year. The Bruins fell short this time, mainly because of fielding miscues (three errors) and pitching woes (five walks and three wild pitches in the crucial sixth).
The game was a back-and-forth battle through five innings, but Snohomish went ahead for good in the sixth. Despite the disappointing result, Cascade head coach Pat Opel focused on the overall success of his senior class.
“This is a great baseball program, and it’s because of the players,” Opel said. “The big thing (for the seniors) is to not be disappointed right now. … Don’t dwell on a bad inning today.
“Today’s a disappointment,” Opel added. “We had higher expectations than this. … But Snohomish is a well-coached team. It wasn’t just our loss. It was their victory.”
Derek Jones had two hits and scored three runs for Snohomish, which seeks its first state title since 1998. Snohomish, which split its regular-season series with Cascade, has won three straight and nine of 10.
At Everett Memorial Stadium
Snohomish0030150-981
Cascade2010200-583
West, Wood (1) and Hennessey. Benson, Souza (6), Pearl (6) and Chiarelli. WP-Wood (5-3). LP-Souza. 2B-Rodland (S) 2, Jones (S), Souza (C) 2, Stone (C), Sieh (C). Records-Snohomish 18-5 overall. Cascade 18-5.
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