BREMERTON — The Sequim Wolves (10-10) picked the right time to start playing efficient baseball, beating Washington 1-0.
Sequim, a team plagued by walks and double-digit scoring affairs this season, rode the arm of Matt Bereiter to a two-hit shutout victory capped by a redemptive play from senior shortstop Reed Omdal in Tuesday’s Class 2A West Central District loser-out playoff game.
And now the Wolves find themselves one win away from their first trip to state since 1997.
“[Bereiter] hit his spots and we played defense behind him,” Sequim coach Dave Ditlefsen said. “It was a real well-played game for us.”
Bereiter threw only 84 pitches in going the distance, striking out seven while giving up just two hits and one walk.
Washington didn’t have a base runner reach third base until the final inning, and that was because of an error by Omdal (Sequim’s lone miscue in the game) at shortstop.
Yet the three-sport star made good on his mistake two outs later, fielding a slow roller up the middle and flipping it to first baseman Spencer Middleton in one motion just in time to record the game-clinching out.
“Reed made a fantastic play on it,” Ditlefsen said. “It was a real clutch play. He’s been a great leader for us as a senior. For him to make that game-ending play was poetic justice for making [the error earlier].”
Alex Gillis scored the only run of the game on an error by the Washington shortstop.
He reached base after getting hit by a pitch, stole second, then tagged up on a fly ball to the left fielder to get to third. Jason Baker then dribbled a ground ball to the shortstop, whose throw drew the first baseman off the bag, allowing Gillis to score from third.
That was all the runs Sequim would need, thanks in large part to Bereiter.
“He’s really come on in the second half of the season,” Ditlefsen said. “He has been one of our more consistent pitchers for the last three or four weeks. His ability to throw strikes is what makes him successful.
“We’ve had some issues with walks this year, and he’s usually been pretty consistent in the strike zone. He keeps performing.”
Sequim will face the Olympic League’s top 2A team, Kingston, in a winner-to-state game on Friday at Legion Field in Bremerton at 7 p.m.
A win puts the Wolves into the 2A state tournament, with a district seeding game set for Saturday. A loss puts them in a loser-out, winner-to-state game on Saturday.
Sequim 1, Washington 0
Sequim 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 – 1 6 1
Washington 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0 2 3
WP- Bereiter (2-2); LP- Cady
Pitching Statistics
Sequim: Bereiter CG, 7K, 2H, BB.
Hitting Statistics
Sequim: Gillis 1-for-2 (HBP, R); Baker 2-for-4 (2B).
