Timberwolves’ dream season ends with a 21-4 record after a split in Wenatchee
Andrew Christiansen
Reporter
Losing is never easy, but there had to be a big dose of pride on the minds of Goldendale’s baseball team after bowing out of the State playoffs following a 10-7 loss to Cashmere. There wasn’t much room for second-guessing or lamenting and what-ifs. Goldendale played a good game and Cashmere played a better one. The Bulldogs made few mistakes and made the most of their opportunities. They scored on a sacrifice fly, an error and a suicide squeeze that proved to be the winning margin.
Goldendale finished the season 21-4, their best season in memory. The Timberwolves’ only losses were to the two teams that meet in the semi-finals. Once to Cashmere and three times to Naches Valley.
Goldendale made it into the quarter-finals on Saturday with a 13-4 pounding of Chewelah on the heels of Cashmere’s similar 13-3 victory over Kiona-Benton. Chewelah jumped on the Wolves with three runs in a sloppy first inning for Goldendale which included a couple of errors and a walk. Goldendale evened the score in the first with a Trevor Fields single and back to back triples by Aaron Cochran and Lucas Denney. Denney scored when the throw to third went into the Cougar’s dugout.
There was a whole lot more Wolf offense to come as Fields and J. D. Moss each had three-hit games and Denney blasted his third hit out of the park for a three-run home run. He finished with five RBI in the game, seven on the day. Fields was sharp on the mound giving up two earned runs in five innings and striking out eight while walking two batters. Nolin Bare finished the game with no runs, one hit and two strike outs in two innings.
Reed Lindhe was on the mound against Cashmere. He stranded a runner at third in the first inning and had things going his way in the second. Cashmere had a runner on second with two out and two strikes against the batter. The next pitch was driven to the gap in left-center, a ground rule double as it got tangled in the center field vines. The next batter tripled and the Bulldogs had a 2-0 lead. Alex Chipman made it 3-0 in the third inning when he raced all the way home from second base on a sacrifice fly to deep right field.
The Wolves got on the board in the third inning, an inning that could have been a big one. Cody Herin and Fields each singled to start the inning. Cochran hit the ball hard, but the laser shot was right at the second baseman and Fields was easy pickings at first for a double play. Denney followed with a single to score Herin, but there was no more scoring in that inning.
The Bulldogs put it all together in the fourth scoring four runs on a pair of walks, a couple of stolen bases, a double, a couple of singles and an error. Even so, the Timberwolves kept their confidence and chipped away at the lead, scoring in each of the last five innings.
J. D. Moss doubled home Justin Garrigus in the fourth and two more runs crossed in the fifth on doubles by Cochran and Lindhe. Luke Dilley replaced Nick Tarver on the mound for Cashmere, getting the final out of the inning.
The Bulldogs got to Moss in the sixth inning scoring with a walk, a triple and a single. Herin took over on the mound and Cashmere scored once more on a suicide squeeze for their 10th run.
Goldendale had something going in the sixth inning, when Garrigus walked and took third on a wild pick-off attempt. With two out, Fields walked and Cochran singled to right. Fields attempted to go from first to third and appeared to slide under the tag when the ball took a hop to the third baseman’s waist, but the umpire called it out number three.
Seth Davis and Lindhe scored on a single by Anthony Dobson in the seventh, but the Wolves ran out of innings.
The Wolves lose some talented seniors, but should have a strong pitching staff and will likely contend in 2011.
30 county athletes qualify for State 1B track and field meet
Andrew Christiansen
Reporter
There will be several familiar names returning to the 1B State track meet at Cheney this weekend. There are also notable absences and some new faces, as area schools toughed out a long, cold meet at Kittitas last Friday.
Returning State champions are Charice McConville and Samantha Brewer, of Klickitat and Liz Vogt and McKenzie Zoller, of TLG. McConville won the discus in 2009 with a toss of 100-feet. Second at State was Bickleton’s Katelynn Clinton. Both girls will fight it out again at State. McConville won the District event with a toss of 106-6.5. Once again, Clinton is on her heels with a second place toss of 100-9. They will have a third competitor from the county at State this year in third place finisher Zoe Lindner, who earned the right to throw at State when she exceeded the State standard with a throw of 96-8.
Brewer was a three time State champion in 2009. She’ll defend all three titles this year thanks to a winning time of 17.11 in the 100 hurdles and wins in the long jump and triple jump. Her District long jump was identical to her State winning jump last year at 15-10.75. She was half an inch off last year’s winning mark in the triple jump with a winning leap of 32-11.25. She will also compete in the high jump at State.
Vogt was State champion in the 400 in 2009, but she chose not to compete in the event during 2010. Instead, she will take a shot at the 300 hurdles. She beat Jamie Bruno, of Pateros in the event at District with a time of 47.65. Bruno was runner-up at State in 2009 as a freshman behind another TLG hurdler, Anna Schmid. Vogt also qualified by passing the State standards in the long jump and triple jump. Vogt has closed the gap between her and Brewer in the long jump this year. Vogt was second to Brewer at State in 2009, 5.25 inches back. She was just 2.25 inches behind Brewer at District this year and has a 16-0.5 PR.
Last year’s pole vault battle between Zoller and Bickleton’s Star Kibby didn’t materialize this year, as Kibby passed on track and field. Most of Zoller’s competition came from teammates Katie and Krissy Yarnell. Zoller set a new PR, one inch better than her State winning jump of 9-0, early in the year and matched it at the District meet. Both Yarnells will also go to State with jumps that exceeded the State standard.
Jamie Venema got healthy in time to help the Bickleton 4x100 relay team break the school record and qualify for State with a 55.52 run at District. The team of Venema, Haley Goodnight, Jenna Mount and Clinton set the new record. However, TLG girls continued to dominate the relays, winning the 4x100 in 54.61, the 4x200 in 1:56.34, and the 4x400 in 4:35.45. Vogt is likely to run in one of those events as her fourth event at State.
On the boys side of the meet, Edgar Molina will return to State in the shot put and discus. Molina was runner-up in the shot in 2009. He won District at 44-3, more than a foot less than his 2009 State performance. Molina also won the District discus with a toss of 127-8. He was fourth in the discus at State in 2009.
One runner who won’t return this year is Junior Hernandez, of Bickleton. Hernandez was a top eight finisher in the 1600 and 3200 last year. This year he put all his marbles on the 3200 and came up four-seconds short, as TLG freshman, Chase England took the spot in 10:53.74. England’s brother, Alec will return to State by virtue of wins in the 1600 and 800 meter races. Lucas King went to State in the 800 last year as a freshman. He will return this year in the sprints after winning the 200 in 24.1 and the 400 in 53.37. Katie Yarnell will represent TLG in the girls’ sprints after winning the 100 in 13.75 and replacing Vogt in the 400. Another freshman, Valerie Vogt swept the distance races, winning the 3200 in 12:57, the 1600 in 5:58.24, and the 800 in 2:39.34.
Freshman, Taylor Brown, of Bickleton surprised in the 110 hurdles, defeating C. J. Schuster, of TLG for the first time with a win in 18.95. Schuster also came up short in the 300 hurdles losing to another Bickleton runner, Nic Venema. Venema will also go to State in the pole vault after finishing runner-up to Brian Langfield, of TLG. Five vaulters cleared the State standard in the pole vault. Also going will be Harvey Starr, Tygh Schuster and Donny Woodruff.
There is room to argue that the outstanding athlete of the District meet is the person who made the greatest gains. That would be Bickleton’s Henrik Heldahl. Heldahl, an exchange student had not competed in track prior to coming to Bickleton. He thought he might give the high jump a shot. His first meet jump went 5-4 and he progressed steadily up to his District win at 5-11. It is the second best mark this year in 1B, behind Aaron Bruya, of Odessa who was third at State in 2009.
Kussman, Thompson and Warner advance to State tennis match
Stacy Thompson and Kelcey Walker lost a 7-5 set in the championship match at Sunnyside, Saturday and settled for second place in the SCAC District tennis championship. The Granger team of Janae Klarich and Emily Carpenter took the girls doubles title with the 6-1, 7-5 match. Both pairs move on to State which begins on Friday, May 28 at the Yakima Tennis Club. Thompson and Walker play at 8:30 a.m. against Sam Journey and Brittney Smith, of Tenino. The winner will play again on Friday at 1:30 p.m. The loser plays at 1 p.m. The final rounds of the tournament will be played on Saturday.
Tom Kussmann also finished as the runner-up in boys singles play, losing to Seth Gibbons, of LaSalle 6-4, 6-4. Kussmann will play on Friday at 11 a.m. Win or lose, he will play his second match at 3 p.m. on Friday.
Keith Bighorn was knocked out of the final four by Zillah’s Troy Dunbar 6-0, 6-2, but he captured the alternate spot with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Candelario Peraza. |
