Baseball
Knights take down Redmond, one win from Crest title
The Redmond Mustangs have been the center of attention in 4A KingCo and the state of Washington for most of the spring. They have three players already committed to play major college baseball next year, were the focus of a feature on ESPN Rise, (an online outlet operated by the sports giant focusing on preps) and were only one win over the Knights away from locking up the Crest championship and the top spot in the upcoming 4A KingCo baseball tournament.
Newport apparently didn’t get the memo.
Behind four-plus innings from starting pitcher Cole Wiper and a shutdown performance from reliever Aaron Sandefur, the Knights took control of the Crest, pushing the Stangs aside by a final score of 3-2.
Wiper scuffled a bit with his control, but managed to go four-plus innings, allowing only the pair of runs. He said after the game his competitive side wanted to remain on the mound to finish the fifth inning, but had plenty of confidence in his teammates to pick him up. “I knew he [Sandefur] would get it done,” Wiper said. Newport coach Hal DeBerry, who said he and his staff had considered other options to close out the game, was ecstatic about the job Sandefur did in relief. “We had confidence in bringing Aaron in when we did and he really came through for us,” DeBerry said.
While Wiper and Sandefur took care of a dangerous Redmond lineup, Jared Fisher and Nick Clifford provided the offense. Clifford got things started, taking Redmond starter Zach Abruzza deep for a solo shot in the second and two innings later, it was Fisher going opposite field just over the left centerfield fence for a two-run job to provide what would be the winning runs.
The win moves Newport to within a half-game of Redmond in the standings with a final game against Eastlake today for the Crest title. “We passed our test today and tomorrow we’ve got another test,” DeBerry said.
The teams will have identical league records if Newport wins (yesterday’s game was the final on the schedule for the Stangs) and will have split the season series, but since one of the Mustangs losses came to a division opponent, it will be the Knights who own the tiebreaker and will take the division title.
The game against Eastlake is set for a 5 p.m. first pitch at Eastlake High School today.
Wolverines doused by Islanders
Bellevue continued its late season swoon, losing for the fifth time in six games 5-3 to Mercer Island. Despite their second half struggles, the Wolverines will remain in contention for a first-round bye in the 3A KingCo tournament if they can get past Lake Washington today. That game will begin at 7 p.m. at Lee Johnson Field at Peter Kirk Park in Kirkland.
Saints trending up
Interlake used a complete game from Griffin Sutich and a pair of RBI from Carl Snaring to take down Juanita 3-1 on Tuesday. The Saints, which have won six of their previous seven, look poised to stir things up in the West Central District III playoffs and possibly earn themselves a spot in the 2A state tournament as well.
Bellevue Christian finishes Overlake
In the conclusion of a suspended game from Monday, Bellevue Christian finished the job against Overlake, winning by a final score of 14-4. The Vikings led 12-2 after one inning and never looked back, moving their record to 7-8 on the year.
Fastpitch Softball
Wolverines erase late deficit against Wildcats
With playoff seeds at stake, Bellevue was good when it mattered most in their 10-8 win over Mount Si on Tuesday. The Wolverines jumped out to a 5-0 lead after two but watched as the Cats found their groove at the plate, scoring four runs in both the second and fourth innings to take an 8-6 lead. Bellevue closed the gap to a single run in the fifth before Anjani Briggs put her team over the top in the seventh with a two-run homerun that also scored Lisa Bennett. Taylor Cooke would provide some insurance, scoring on a sacrifice fly from Sammie Trulson later in the inning.
Emily Fleischman went the distance in the circle for Bellevue, giving up eight runs (four earned) on 11 hits and walking one. Briggs finished the day 2-3 and Cooke, Fleischman, Katie Savard and Bennett also each had two hits. Kaitlyn Melby was 3-4 with an RBI in the win.
The victory gives Bellevue the second seed in the upcoming 3A fastpitch tournament, where they will likely face Liberty in the opening round.
Soccer
Mount Si blanks Bellevue on pitch
Bellevue and Mount Si played a scoreless first half before the Wildcats’ Alex Censullo scored a pair of goals in the second frame to lift his team to a 2-0 win. Kody Clearman and Aaron Baumgardner each picked up an assist in the win.
Newport tops Roosevelt
Newport used a shutout in goal from keeper Nate Novotny and a Michael Kahn strike in the 28th minute to get a 1-0 win over the Roughriders.
Saints fall to Juanita
Interlake received a Nick Roth goal in just the 3rd minute to take a quick lead, but ultimately could not hold on, losing to the Juanita Rebels 2-1. Nick Horne and Oscar Fuentes scored only three minutes apart late in the game to seal the deal for the Rebs.
Totems downed for first time
Sammamish, perhaps breathing a sigh of relief after locking up the top spot in the league and the automatic state playoff berth that comes with, lost for the first time this year, 1-0 to Lake Washington.
