MOUNTLAKE TERRACE – What do you get when you combine a mitt-popping 88-mile-per-hour fastball, a bewildering changeup and a wicked, soil-sniffing 72-mph curve?
You get Geoff Brown’s best pitching performance of the season and another impressive victory for the Kamiak Knights baseball team.
Brown, a sophomore, struck out 12 hitters in a complete-game effort and Kamiak built a 6-0 lead en route to an 11-1 Western Conference South Division triumph over the Mountlake Terrace Hawks Wednesday at the Mountlake Terrace High baseball field.
Brown, a left-hander, surrendered nine hits but worked out of several jams to even his record at 3-3. With just three games remaining in the regular season, he threw 111 pitches to help Kamiak (11-4 in division, 12-4 overall) win its fourth consecutive game and keep hold of third place in the Wesco South.
Designated hitter Bryan Barnes had three hits for Terrace (12-3, 14-3), which fell out of a first-place tie with Jackson (13-2, 15-2) and into second. The Hawks, who had won six consecutive games, get another chance against Kamiak Friday in Mukilteo.
With Kamiak’s No. 1 starting pitcher, senior Adam St. Clair, unavailable for almost the entire season after suffering a back injury, Brown has stepped up to fill the void. “He’s been a little bit off this season,” Kamiak coach Steve Merkley said of Brown, a left-hander who plays center field when he’s not pitching. “Today he wasn’t off. He got it going.”
Brown gave up just one extra-base hit (Justin Bruce’s fourth-inning triple, which led to Terrace’s only run) and pitched his way out of trouble in the second, third, fifth and sixth innings. Proving he has style and stamina, Brown struck out the final batter of the game on three pitches. Despite racking up several three-ball counts, he didn’t walk anyone.
“Everything was on today,” said Brown, who also had a run-scoring, line-drive single in the sixth. “All my pitches were awesome (and) I hit my spots.”
Brown handled pressure situations like a wily senior. Three times he escaped unscathed from situations where Terrace had runners on first and second with one out or less. Not only was Brown effective throwing to the plate, but he also stifled Terrace’s fifth-inning threat by picking off a runner at second base.
“I just don’t let it bother me,” Brown said of his ability to stay calm. ” (Mental toughness) has always been with me. I feel like a sophomore, but the way I pitched today…”
Enough said.
Kamiak got offensive production from all over its lineup. No. 9 hitter Sean Hermes reached base four times, had two hits, stole two bases and scored three runs. Leadoff man Josh Reed (three RBI, two runs), No. 3 hitter Jesse Wight (two RBI) and No. 6 hitter Kevin Guinn (two runs) all had two hits apiece.
Hermes, a senior first baseman who didn’t play much as a sophomore or junior, started Kamiak’s scoring with a line-drive single to right-center field that drove in Guinn in the top of the second inning. He also contributed a stellar defensive play, backpedaling to make an agile catch for the third out in the bottom of the third.
Following two consecutive one-run victories over Edmonds-Woodway (10-5, 12-5) and a 12-4 blasting of Shorewood (10-5, 11-6), Kamiak has put together one heck of a final charge. The Knights’ goal, according to coach Merkley, is to snare the No. 2 seed and a resultant home game for the upcoming Class 4A District 1 tournament. With another victory over Terrace on Friday and a two-game sweep against Meadowdale to close the regular season, they’ll have it.
At Mountlake Terrace
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Brown and Mangano. Hennum, Knudsen (5), Clark (6), Hjort (7) and Bruce. WP-Brown (3-3). LP-Hennum. 2B-Mangano (K), Wight (K). 3B-Bruce (MT). Records-Kamiak 11-4 in league, 12-4 overall. Mountlake Terrace 12-3, 14-3.
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