PORT ANGELES — Three wins in two days has Wilder Senior in prime position to win its own 28th Dick Brown Memorial Firecracker Classic.
The Olympic Peninsula American Legion squad posted 14 runs in the final two frames of a 15-3 win over the Columbia Basin River Dogs on Thursday, 10-runned Lakeside 10-0 in the opening game of an evening doubleheader Friday and three-hit the Everett Rivals in the nightcap 9-2.
Wilder Senior posted five extra-base hits in the Friday contests and received sterling pitching performances from starters Adam Watkins and Landon Seibel.
“That really helps us out [strategically] and we still have guys who haven’t pitched yet,” coach Zac Moore said. “Right now, [Friday night] we are the No. 1 seed going into Sunday.”
Wilder Senior played its final group game late Saturday. Today’s championship game is set for 5 p.m.
Wilder wasted no time getting on the board against Lakeside with leadoff hitter Jacob Felton belting a triple and coming home on a passed ball.
Wyatt Hall tripled home Logan Olson who had reached on a walk and scored on an errant throw to third base for a quick 3-0 lead.
Four more runs came in the third as Hall brought in Kamron Meadows with a sacrifice fly, Tanner Price got the best of a full count for an RBI single and Seibel laced a two-run triple to the right-center gap for a 7-0 lead.
“Any time you can get three triples in a game it’s always a good thing, ” Moore said. “Extra-base hits always motivate the team.”
Trey Baysinger drove in a pair of runs on an infield single and Seibel added an RBI ground out to account for the final runs.
Starter Adam Watkins limited Lakeside to four hits and struck out four in tossing a 5-inning complete game.
“Adam has been pitching really well. He’s been competing in the zone every time, all his pitches are working and he’s just getting after it,” Moore said.
Against Everett, Baysinger belted an RBI double to right center to score his Forks teammate Logan Olson, who reached on his first of three walks.
Well-executed bunts drove in a pair of runs for Wilder, including one on a suicide squeeze.
Kamron Meadows walked to open the third, moved to third on a well-struck single by Price and scored when Michael Grubb laid down a perfect bunt and beat the throw to first base.
Seth Woods added a sacrifice bunt later on that pushed the lead to 5-1.
“I almost yelled for Grubb to take it off because Kam was nearly going to steal home himself,” Moore said.
“They weren’t holding us to third base really well,” Moore said. “That allows our guys to get short and there was a lot of lackadaisical play so we were able to take home and get a big jump and we have two really good bunters and they were able to execute.”
Seibel nearly homered in the third, instead doubling off the YMCA sign in left-center and coming home on Woods’ bunt.
He took some good-natured ribbing from his teammates for only making it to second base, but Seibel has driven in seven RBIs in the first three games and earned the win on the mound against Everett.
“I didn’t see his trip down first base, I was watching the ball,” Moore said. “I reminded him that he probably should have been at third when he was standing on second base, but you want to reward a kid like that who is working his butt off on the mound and hits a double off the fence.”
Seibel went six innings, allowing two unearned runs on three hits with four strikeouts.
“He started getting his off-speed pitches working for strikes and competing more in the zone,”Moore said. “He was outside the zone early on and he started focusing in and using his splitter late which really kept people off balance.”
Wilder Sr. 15, River Dogs 3
WSr. 1 0 0 0 0 4 10 — 15 6 0
RD 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 — 3 6 5
WP: Baysinger LP: Bingham
Pitching
Wilder — Woods 4 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, BB, K; Bradow IP, H, ER, 2 BB; Baysinger 2 IP, K.
River Dogs — Roberts 5.1I P, 0 H, 2 ER, 8 BB, 8 K; Bingham 0.1IP, 2 H, 3 R; Martin 0.1IP, 2 H, 4 R, 2 BB, K; Correia 0.2 IP, H, 5 R, 3 BB, K; Lindrey 0.1 IP, H, R, BB.
Hitting
Wilder — Baysinger 1-2, 2 BB, 2 R, 3 RBI; Seibel 1-3, R, 2 BB, 3 RBI; Price 1-2, R, 2 BB, 2B, RBI; Vaara 1-1, 2 R, 2 RBI; Grubb 1-4, R, RBI.
Wilder Sr. 10, Lakeside 0
WSr. 3 0 4 0 3 X X — 10 6 0
Lake. 0 0 0 0 0 X X — 0 4 4
WP: Watkins LP: Clark
Pitching
Wilder — Watkins 5 IP, 4 H, BB, 4 K.
Lakeside — Clark 4.2 IP, 6 H, 10 R, 6 ER, 3 BB, 5 K; Emery 0.1 IP, 2 BB.
Hitting
Wilder — Seibel 1-3, 3B, 3 RBI; Hall 1-1, 2 R, HBP, SF, 3B, 2 RBI; Olson 1-1, 3 R, BB, HBP, SB; Felton 1-3, R, 3B; Price 1-2, R, SB, RBI; Baysinger 0-2, 2R, BB; Meadows 1-3.
Wilder Sr. 9, Everett Rivals 2
Rivals 0 0 4 0 3 1 0 — 2 3 3
WSr. 1 3 1 1 2 1 X — 9 10 5
WP: Seibel LP: Pedersen
Pitching
Wilder — Seibel 6 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 4 K; Baysinger IP, BB, K.
Everett — Pedersen 2.1 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 5 K; Matson 2.2 IP, 2 H, 3 R, ER, 4 BB, 2 K; Long IP, 2 H, R, ER.
Hitting
Wilder — Seibel 1-3, R, SF, 2B, RBI; Olson 1-1, 2 R, 3 BB, 2 SB; Baysinger 1-2, HBP, 2B, RBI; Felton 1-4, 2 R 3 SB, RBI Hall 2-4; Woods 1-3, R, RBI; Grubb 0-2, RBI; Meadows 1-2, R, BB, SB.
Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News Wilder pitcher Adam Watkins throws against Lakeside on Friday at Port Angeles Civic Field.
Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News Wilder’s Conner Bear bats against Lakeside on Friday afternoon at Port Angeles Civic Field.
