Columbia Basin defeated Blue Mountain to complete the 4-game sweep of the Timberwolves 8-7 and 5-1. Basin takes commanding 3-game lead of the 2-seed ahead of Walla Walla series.
On Sophomore day, the Hawks did not come out ready early in Game 1. Starter
Jace Wessels suffered some bad luck both self-inflicted and error-aided allowing Blue Mountain to take a 5-0 lead after the 1st inning. Wessels was not his sharpest on the day but was only credited with 4 earned of the 7 that came across in his 4 innings of work.
Despite the early 7-1 deficit, Basin was quietly determined to chip away. They scored 2 runs in the 4th/5th/6th innings with big game tying blast coming off the bat of
Steven Meier to deep left field.
Landon Webb was stellar out of the pen holding Blue to just 1 hit in his 5 innings of work while allowing no runs. He was able to get a little help as
Hayden Matray threw out a runner at home in the 8th which would have been the go-ahead lead. The Blue Mountain coach vehemently disagreed with the seemingly correct call and was thrown out of the game.
In the bottom of the 9th with 2 outs,
Harper Huang singled and advanced to second after a
Chris Mehren walk.
Makai Miyamoto smacked a line drive ground ball up the middle that the Timberwolf second baseman was unable to snag that allowed Huang to come all the way around for the game-winner.
In Game 2, both teams could only muster 1 hit a piece through the first 5 innings. Starter
Brady Toth was sharp, going 7 innings allowing just 1 run on 4 hits. CBC had the big inning in the 6th, down 1-0.
Hayden Matray hit a deep sac fly that brought home Meier. Then after a
Gaven Mattson double,
Wyatt Lizama tripled to left bringing home Mattson. Then with 2 outs and the bases loaded, Miyamoto again came through with a clutch 2-RBI single to make it 4-1.
In the 7th, tempers briefly flared as Meier was hit in the back for the 4th time in a row. Despite a seemingly clear intent to throw at the Hawk Center Fielder, Blue Mountain was issued no warnings even after Coach McGovern voiced extreme displeasure. The Hawks added an insurance run in the 8th as
Will Baker singled home Huang.
Dylan Berry came on in the 9th on a mission to send a message. the Sophomore righty fired two strike outs in a row before letting out a loud cheer directed at the dugout but clearly aimed at the Timberwolves for throwing at Meier. CBC closed it out with little resistance for the 5-1 final score.
The sweep gives CBC a 3-game lead over Walla Walla for the 2-seed in the East. They will begin a 4-game series with the Warriors on Wednesday. If the Hawks can win 1 of those 4 games, they will clinch the 2-seed and host a regional playoff.
