4/27/16
Centralia 7, Tumwater 4
(Centralia, WA) The Tigers bounced back after a tough 8-inning loss on Tuesday topping the T-Birds. The win secures 2nd place for the Tigers as WF West clinched the Championship on Tuesday with their win over Black Hills combined with the Tigers loss. Tumwater remains in 3rd place but their game on Monday at home with Black Hills will determine 3rd and 4th place.
This is important because the 4th place team will have to host Aberdeen in a loser out play-in game and the play the 5th place GSHL team in a loser out pigtail just to qualify as the 4th seed in the District tournament.
WF West 5, Black Hills 0
(Tumwater, WA) The Bearcats clinched the Championship and #1 seed the night before and Head Coach Bryan Bullock admitted that they will have a different approach for their final 4 games, 2 league and 2 non-league. Bullock said their starting short stop and likely all-league player Elijah Johnson was held out with a bit of a tweaked hamstring. Bullock said they are playing to win but also make sure everyone is healthy and to get other guys in some situations that they may need come play-off time. Bullock said it is a unique opportunity to tune up before the loser out games start and he appreciates the position his team went out and earned winning the Championship in the 7th of 9 league games.
The Cats did get the chance to let others contribute especially with the comfort they got from their starting pitcher Tyson Guerrero. Guerrero was simply unhittable cruising through 5 innings of perfection facing 15 batters and recording 15 straight outs.
Guerrero got plenty of offense to back him up as well beginning in the 2nd inning. With one out Hayden Dobyns walked followed by Tyler Pallas who drilled a double to center field. Max Miller then came through with an RBI single to score Dobyns and move Pallas to 3rd. Kolby Steen flied one to the outfield scoring Pallas on the sacrifice and the Bearcats led 2-0.
WF West would 3 more in the top of the 5th inning. Hunter Fuchs led off with a base hit, after a strikeout Guerrero walked and Dakota Hawkins singled to fill the bases. Dobyns then stepped to the plate and hammered one to the gap off Wolves starting pitcher Nate Hutson clearing the bases with a stand-up double for a 5-0 lead. This hit would also earn our ProActive Physical Therapy Play of the Game.
The Wolves would finally get a base runner in the bottom of the 6th when Alex Bowden chopped a grounder to Dobyns who got caught in between hops trying to keep Guerrero’s perfect game intact but could not make the play as Bowden tagged the base for the infield base hit. Tanner Ivie would pinch hit 2 batters later and slapped a soft line-drive into right field for the 2nd hit. After a sac bunt for the 2nd out, Guerrero would get a strike-out his 7th of the game to protect the shut out. The Cats would end the game in the 7th with a beautiful 5-4-3 double play for the 5-0 win.
Guerrero told us after the game he was well aware of the situation going into the 6th inning and just wanted to keep throwing strikes and if a no-hitter worked out or even a perfect game it would be exciting but he tried to focus on throwing strikes. For his performance Guerrero earned out Tommy Lowe of Greene Realty Player of the Game for the Bearcats while we gave the Black Hills award to the guy who spoiled Guerrero’s perfect game, Alex Bowden.
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