PORT HADLOCK — Eli Harrison pitched a no-hitter and Quilcene beat Seattle Lutheran 16-1 in five innings at the Bob Bates Little League Fields.
The Rangers clinch a state berth with the victory and now advance to the Class 1B District 1/2/4 baseball tournament semifinals, where they will face Naselle at Bob Bates today at 4 p.m.
“Eli Harrison pitched the best game he’s pitched for us,” Quilcene coach Darrin Dotson said.
“The runners that got on base were due to walks and one fielding error. No balls were hit to the outfield or past the infield. Good ground-ball pitching by him.”
Harrison struck out 10 and walked four in five innings on the mound.
Tuesday’s loser-out showdown also served as a rubber match for the SeaTac League foes, who split their season series.
In those two games, the Rangers only managed seven hits against the Saints.
“We took a different approach in our batting at our last practice. Made the boys be more selective in the beginning of the count and looked to attack the ball deeper in the count,” Dotson said.
“Results were night and day: we had 11 hits and eight walks and four strikeouts in tonight’s game, where in the game we lost to Seattle earlier in the season we had one hit, four walks and 11 strikeouts.”
Ben Bruner drove in four runs and scored three for Quilcene. Harrison, Andy Johnston, Olin Reynolds and Nate Weller each drove in two runs.
“Boys have been playing at high level and let up a little close to the end of the season,” Dotson said.
“We focused on getting back to that place this week. We kept the pressure on and played loose and relaxed tonight.
“This type of play got us two more games this week and a berth to state.”
The Rangers were originally scheduled to face Crosspoint in the first round, but the Warriors were ruled ineligible for the district tournament due to a lack of players.
Naselle advanced to today’s game by defeating Lopez 11-6 on Tuesday.
Quilcene 16, Seattle Lutheran 1, 5 innings
Seattle Lutheran 0 0 0 1 0 — 1 0
Quilcene 0 6 6 4 x — 16 11
WP- Harrison
Pitching Statistics
Quilcene: Harrison 5 IP, 0 H, R, 4 BB, 10 K.
Hitting Statistics
Quilcene: Prater 2-2, 3B, 2 BB, 3 R; Harrison 1-1, 3 BB, 3 R, 2 RBI; Bruner 1-2, 2B, BB, 3 R, 4 RBI; Weller 1-4, 2 RBI; Johnston 2-3, 2B, BB, 2 R, 2 RBI; Smith 1-3, BB, R, RBI; Reynolds 1-2, 2B, R, 2 RBI; Soderberg 2-3, 2 R; Mahan 0-1, R.
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Compiled using team reports. Coaches can submit game statistics to sports@peninsuladailynews.com.
