EVERETT
Mountlake Terrace came into the 4A District 1 championship game full of confidence and that confidence was on full display from the start.
The Hawks scored five runs in the first inning and then added to the lead with runs in each of the next four innings to handily win its first-ever district baseball title 13-3 over Marysville-Pilchuck May 10 at Everett Memorial Stadium.
The victory sends Mountlake Terrace into the state regional tournament, where the Hawks will take on Central Kitsap at 1 p.m., Saturday, May 17, at Everett Memorial Stadium. If Mountlake Terrace wins then it faces either Snohomish or Puyallup at 4 p.m. in the regional finals and the right to play in the state semifinals at Safeco Field.
“It’s going to be tough,” said senior pitcher Jake Theis, who improved to 7-1 for the season. “If we win the first two, we’re in Safeco and that’s the dream.”
By winning the district tournament, Mountlake Terrace earned the right to stay closer to home, which should be an advantage. In the past, the Hawks have had to travel to Kent for the playoffs.
“I’m looking forward to our kids getting an opportunity to host this regional and to be that top seed,” said Mountlake Terrace coach Andrew Watters. “I think it gives us the best chance to get to the next level. Our focus for the rest of the week is really going to be to win the first game, win game one.
“Every step we take as a team is a first in school history because we have yet to win a state game.”
For the second straight game, junior Ryan Sells provides some late-game fireworks. In Tuesday night’s contest against Shorewood, Sells hit a first-pitch fastball to the left field corner to score the winning run as the Hawks pulled out a 5-4 victory in the bottom of the ninth inning.
This time Sells smacked a two-run home run to left field in the bottom of the fifth inning to secure the game, which was halted due to the 10-run rule.
“I was looking for the first-pitch fast ball both times and I got it right where I wanted it and took advantage of it,” Sells said. “This is big for our team. It gives us confidence going into state.”
Sells struck out and walked twice in his previous three at-bats.
“He stays in the moment,” Watters said of Sells. “He’s capable of doing anything at any time. … It’s pretty incredible the last two games for him to have two walk-offs like that, a walk-off double and the home run today. He’s just a great athlete and that’s why we throw him out there.”
Equally impressive as Mountlake Terrace’s timely hitting was the Hawks’ pitching in the district tournament. Theis pitched two complete games, while teammate Kyle Barisic threw all nine innings against the Thunderbirds.
“Jake and Kyle were fantastic and Kyle, especially on Tuesday. That was something else,” Watters said. “Jake gave us Jake today. He’s done it all year and it’s a real key time of the year to have that pitching and we’ve been consistent with it all year. Hopefully, we can do it for two more games.”
Added Sells, “We’ve loving it. As long as they can keep doing what they’re doing, we’re going to go far in state hopefully.”
The five runs in the first inning definitely gave Theis an added boost, Watters said. “That first inning is just huge. … You give him five runs to deal with the rest of the game. I just don’t think there’re too many teams that will be us.”
The Hawks (17-6) came into Saturday’s contest with a seven-game winning streak.
“The game we played today was about my kids having confidence,” Watters said. “We’ve had tough battles at the end of the season … and we’ve managed to come out on top.”
Mountlake Terrace took advantage of four walks in the first inning, as Marysville-Pilchuck starter Frank Nelson struggled to find the plate. The Hawks took a 2-0 lead on a double by junior Matt Shafer, who later scored on a wild pitch. Sophomore Andrew Woeck and junior Karsten Strieby also drove in runs on a single and sacrifice fly, respectively.
The Hawks, however, weren’t content to sit on their lead as they tacked on a run in the second and third innings. Senior Craig Heath drew a walk to score a run in the second and junior Jaykob Sells drove in a run with a single to center field in the third.
“I was really proud of my guys for having the patience early in that game to put them in trouble,” Watters said. “The kids had a very good approach at the plate and they accepted the base-on-balls and accepted getting on base. We got them in trouble early.”
Marysville-Pilchuck cut the lead to 7-3 with a run in the third and two runs in the fourth. Mountlake Terrace continued its assault in fourth with more runs after the Tomahawks issued three straight walks to start the inning. A wild pitch enabled Heath to score and then Woeck followed with a single to drive in another run. Junior Jacob Mann then singled to score another run as the Hawks lead 10-3.
Watters was especially pleased that his players didn’t let up on Marysville-Pilchuck. He noted that in some high school games, teams seem content to sit on their leads.
“They were really focused on getting this title,” Watters said.
In the fifth, senior Garrett Totten led off with a single to center field, moved to third on a errant pickoff throw and then scored on a groundout by Shafer. Junior Paul Clingan followed with a single to center field, which brought Ryan Sells the opportunity to seal the victory with what was his first home run of the year.
“From day one we all knew we had a good club,” Theis said. “We’ve got great chemistry on this team. We’ve got 11, 12, 13 guys that have played together since they were nine or 10. … We love going out there and having fun.”
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