Pirates bumped from league tourney in 4-3 tilt

WALLA WALLA–"Baseball the way it's been played for a hundred years" resulting in an intense but disappointing outcome for the league-leading Pirate nine as they dropped a tight 4-3 playoff game to Liberty Christian here May 4.

The Pirates rally, two runs in the bottom of the seventh and the tying run on first base, fell short.

"It reminds you of how baseball normally looks," said Head Coach Dave Boyer. "All the games this year have been high scores, like 15-12.

"This was a tight game," said Coach Boyer. "Four to three. It was the way baseball has been played for a hundred years, back and forth and played really well."

Liberty Christian, the number four team going into the tournament, had been victim to Pirate hitters in the earlier meetings this season. Patriot thrower Cody Dunham came to pitch on this day. "We pounded him pretty good during the season," Boyer said. "I guess he got better as the season went on because he did a pretty good job pitching."

Liberty scored in the first inning and was leading 1-0 into the bottom frame of the fourth, when the Bucs knotted it 1-1.

But the Patriots answered with two runs in the next inning, with some controversy. Liberty had two on base, and the third-base runner had been too far off the bag. On the throw back to third, Boyer believed the runner got tagged; the base umpire disagreed. Boyer argued the point and asked the base ump to see what the plate ump ruled, but his request was denied. "Over the course of a season, we've had plays like that that have gone in our favor," Boyer said. "This one went in their favor."

Liberty held that 3-1 lead through the seventh, when they added one more run for a 4-1 lead, with the home-team Pirates last at bat coming up.

Up first, Ollie Severs reached on a base on balls, followed by Braden Mings also getting walked. Nick Bryson went down swinging, but by then, the baserunners had advance to scoring position, third and second.

Brodie MaGill hit a sacrifice to the third baseman, Severs scoring but MaGill out at first and Mings advancing to third. The first baseman's throw to try and put MaGill out at third was bad, and Mings scored on the error.

Two away and nobody on base, Jesse Mings singles to right to reach. Trevin Kimble's grounder to first base ended the rally.

"It was close," Boyer said. "We were working at it."

The loss put LC in the championship game and sent Pomeroy packing, the 12-3 season over, but the consolation of being 1B Southeast champs.

"It was a way better season than what we would have," Boyer said. "The kids just outperformed any expectations we had. They did a great job."

Senioring out will be Carson Zimmerman, Jakob Blachly and Noah Lamb. "They did a great job," Boyer said, of the three starters.

"But we've got some young kids coming up I think are going to be decent ball players," he said, "who will step in there and help us out, next year be a little bit stronger, older and bigger.

"Two-thirds of our kids were real young," Boyer said. "We should have a pretty good ball club the next few years."

May 4

Game 1 in playoffs-loser out

R H E

LC 100 020 1-4 7 2

Pom 000 100 2-3 5 4

Battery: LC-Dunham, Ott (7) and Dunham. Pom-Trace Roberts, Ollie Severs (3), Brodie MaGill (5), Braden Mings (6) and Trevin Kimble.

Hits: LC-Kerr 2, Mooney, Dunham 2, Culver 2. Pom-Jesse Mings, Trevin Kimble, Trace Roberts (2b), Richie Vecchio, Braden Mings.

The Pirates hosted Asotin Saturday, May 1 in a round-robin, non-league double-header, hetting hammered 13-0. Teams, with Pomeroy, needing games included Asotin and Colton. Asotin and Colton played the opener, then Asotin and Pomeroy faced off.

"We were doing pretty good going into the top of fifth," Boyer said. "Then they scored seven runs on us. Up until that time, we'd been playing them pretty good."

Asotin's pitcher, Jake Tanguay, is a transfer to the area from California. "It's obvious he's played a lot of baseball," Boyer said. "He's probably the best pitcher we've seen in the last four or five years.

May 1

Asotin at Pomeroy

R H E

Aso 110 074 x-13 14 0

Pom 000 000 x-0 2 4

Battery: Aso-J. Tanugay and P. Overberg, J. Boyea (6). Pom-Ollie Severs, Trace Roberts (3), Braden Mings (5) and Trevin Kimble.

Hits: Aso-P. Overberg 3 (3b), G. Ellis 3, R. Denham, K. Judy, J. Overberg, J. Boyea, C. Thomas, J. Stevens, A. Olerich, D. Olson.