State baseball preview: A look at the state regionals for local teams

Below are capsules for the high school baseball state regionals on Saturday that involve local teams. Each classification’s state tournament is broken into four state regional pods, with each regional consisting of a four-team single-elimination bracket.

The winners of each state regional advance to their respective state final fours. The state final fours consist of the state semifinals next Friday, followed the state championship games and third-place games next Saturday. The Class 3A state final four is in Pasco. The 2A state final four is in Yakima.

3A STATE REGIONAL at MOUNT SI H.S. (Snoqualmie)

Game 1: No. 2 Lake Washington (17-5) vs. No. 15 Edmonds-Woodway (15-10), 10 a.m.

Game 2: No. 7 Lynnwood (15-7) vs. No. 10 Mt. Spokane (20-5), 1 p.m.

Game 3: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner, time TBD

Game 3 winner: advances to 3A state final four

Edmonds-Woodway: Led by the elite senior pitching duo of Oregon State commit Gibby Marshall-Inman and Jacob Gabler, the Warriors are making their fourth consecutive state regional appearance. Edmonds-Woodway has allowed just three runs combined in five playoff games, including no earned runs in a combined 33.1 postseason innings pitched by its two aces. The Warriors suffered a 1-0 eight-inning loss to Lynnwood in the 3A District 1 Tournament title game, but rebounded to beat No. 18 seed Gig Harbor for a walkoff 2-1 eight-inning win in Tuesday’s 3A state play-in round. Edmonds-Woodway is looking to return to the state semifinals after making back-to-back trips in 2017 and 2018.

Lynnwood: After a 6-6 start, the Royals have won nine of their past 10 games en route to the 3A District 1 Tournament title and their first state appearance since back-to-back trips in 2015 and 2016. Lynnwood also split the Wesco 3A/2A South title with Meadowdale, which marked the program’s first league crown in at least two decades. The Royals have leaned on their pitching and defense, allowing just four runs combined in their three district tournament games — including a 1-0 eight-inning shutout of Edmonds-Woodway in the district championship. Lynnwood is seeking its first trip to the state semifinals since 1991.

3A STATE REGIONAL at BANNERWOOD PARK (Bellevue)

Game 1: No. 1 West Seattle (22-1) vs. No. 17 Stanwood (16-8), 10 a.m.

Game 2: No. 8 Walla Walla (14-7) vs. No. 9 Bonney Lake (19-4), 1 p.m.

Game 3: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner, time TBD

Game 3 winner: advances to 3A state final four

Stanwood: It’s been a milestone-filled season for the Spartans, who have ridden pitching and defense to their best season in nearly a quarter-century. They claimed the Wesco 3A/2A North title, which marked their first league championship since 1998. They won back-to-back district elimination games to earn their first state berth since 1998 and just their third in program history. And in Tuesday’s 3A state play-in round, they traveled south and beat No. 16 seed Kelso 3-1 for their program’s first-ever state victory. Stanwood got off to a 4-6 start, but has since won 12 of its past 14 games. It’s the Spartans’ first winning season since 2014 and just their second since 2008.

2A STATE REGIONAL at PROPSTRA STADIUM (Vancouver)

Game 1: No. 2 Columbia River (18-4) vs. No. 15 Steilacoom (14-6), 10 a.m.

Game 2: No. 7 West Valley-Spokane (18-4) vs. No. 10 Archbishop Murphy (13-10), 1 p.m.

Game 3: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner, time TBD

Game 3 winner: advances to 2A state final four

Archbishop Murphy: The Wildcats went 9-5 in Wesco 3A/2A play as the only 2A team in the eight-team split-classification league. Archbishop Murphy then rattled off three consecutive victories to claim the 2A District 1 Tournament title, including a 2-1 semifinal win over No. 2 seed Anacortes and a 5-4 eight-inning win over top-seeded Lynden in the championship game. The Wildcats, who earned a third-place state trophy in 2019, are seeking their second consecutive trip to the state semifinals.