Boys baseball teams from Thurston County competed in WIAA district baseball games this past week with several local teams qualifying. The Olympia Bears (17-6, 4A SPSL) boys team won the 4A District four competition on Saturday in extra innings with a 2-1 win over rival Puyallup. Tumwater and Capital qualified with walk-off wins. Tumwater (16-5, 2A EVCO) defeated R.A. Long 3-2 and Capital (13-8 3A SSC) played 16 innings and defeated Auburn Mountainview 11-10. Tenino (17-6, 1A) competing in 1A play beat King’s Way Christian School 9-2 Monday to qualify for 1A state tournament.
4A Districts Baseball: Olympia
With three district wins and the district title, Olympia heads now to the 4A State bracket and hosts Bothel at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 18, 2024, at the Regional Athletic Complex in Lacey.
Head coach Derek Weldon was proud of the growth of his team through the season. “It was certainly a big win to beat a really good team to win our third straight district championship,” Weldon remarked after the final. “I’m really proud of our guys and our program as a whole. We’ve kind of had a very long way in the last month or so. We’re fired up about the upcoming state regional. Having the opportunity to host again is special and we are excited about the opportunity to go back to Pasco for another final four.”
3A Districts Baseball: Capital, North Thurston, Timberline
Capital hosts a State Regional game against Southridge High School, Tuesday, May 14, at 4 p.m. at Waits Field in Olympia after qualifying with a win in a 16-inning thriller on Saturday, May 11 against Auburn Mountainview. The road to state was bumpy for Capital who held the first seed going into the 3A District 4 tournament. They fell to eventual district champions Peninsula 3-10 May 7 and then defeated Prairie 11-10 May 8, lost to Gig Harbor 0-3 May 11 and then beat Auburn Riverside later that day.
In the final winner-to-state, loser-out game against Auburn Riverside, Capital headed into the bottom of the 7th down by a run with two outs. Junior Gavin Dolan hit a long drive to center which the center fielder for Auburn Riverside misplayed, allowing the ball to travel to the wall. Dolan ran for home attempting an inside-the-park tying home run, sliding in seconds after the throw came in from the outfield but the catcher misplayed the catch allowing Capital to tie the game. Both teams traded scoreless extra innings until a base hit in the bottom of the 16th by senior Karsten Hansen saw Capital win with senior Micahel Navarro blitzing home from second.
Head coach for Capital, Brian Shannon, was thrilled with the fight and competitive nature of his team. “Gavin Dolan had the huge inside-the-park home run with our season on the line and that was a product of him running hard out of the box, he always goes all out and it paid off at the biggest possible time,” Shannon stated.
In other 3A District play North Thurston beat Bainbridge 3-2 May 7 and then moved on to play Gig Harbor May 8 losing 3-5. Timberline also made the district tournament but lost May 7 against Prairie 1-2.
2A Districts Baseball: Tumwater, Rochester
Tumwater, like Capital, had a mixed tournament having to beat R.A Long to reach state after a loss to Columbia River. The TBirds will try for a three-peat state title run, having won the title the past two years. Tumwater District 4 2A road included a 10-0 win over Mark Morris May 7 followed by a heartbreaking 5-6 loss to Columbia River on May 8.
The TBirds earned the No. 8 state seed in the 2A State tournament and will take on No. 9 Pullman in the first round at Auburn High School on May 18 at 1 p.m.
Rochester also competed in 2A District play. The Warriors beat Washougal 14-3 May 4 then lost to Ridgefield 0-2 May 7 and fell to R.A. Long 3-11 May 8, just missing out on a state berth.
1A District Baseball: Tenino
Tenino was the 1A District 4 runner-up. The path for the Beavers included a May 6 9-2 win over King’s Way Christian and a 3-1 win over La Center on May 7. The Beavers fell to Seton Catholic 11-0 on May 11 and will now face Lakeside High School (Nine Mile Falls) on Saturday, May 18 in the 1A State tournament at 10 a.m. in Yakima. The Beavers earned the No. 5 seed in the state tournament.
Tenino head Coach Ryan Schlesser is excited for his team’s chance to go back to state. “Last year we felt like we should have gone a little deeper and I’m hoping another year of experience and knowing what that feels like will help us this year,” Schlesser stated.
1B/2B District Baseball: Rainier, Pope John Paul
In other Thurston County baseball action, Pope John Paul II High School won its 1B district game 1-0 after a forfeit win against Muckleshoot Tribal School. They lost 0-11 to Orcas Island May 4. Rainier, competing in the 2B District, fell to Napavine 0-13 May 3.
