MOSES LAKE — Wilder Baseball captured second place at the Babe Ruth 18U state tournament to earn a trip to the regional championships.
Wilder went 3-2 at state to take second behind host team River Dogs from Moses Lake.
“The heat really got to us,” Wilder manager Rob Merritt said.
The elite North Olympic baseball team had doubleheaders on two days and had run out of gas in the championship game to the River Dogs.
“We played at 10 in the morning and again at 1 p.m.,” Merritt said. “That 1 p.m. game just destroyed us. We were just cramping up [and having problems with the heat].”
Regionals start Thursday at Kent Memorial Stadium in Kent.
Wilder opens play Thursday at 11:45 a.m. against South Oregon, than plays later that day at 8 p.m. against South Washington in pool play.
Friday action
Pool play continues Friday with Wilder taking on Wyoming at 2:30 p.m.
Wilder then has a bye Saturday and finishes pool play Sunday at 9 a.m. against nemesis River Dogs, which beat the area team twice at state.
The top two teams from each division play in the championship semifinals Monday, and the two winners play for all the marbles later Monday in the title game.
Only the winner advances to the World Series.
Last year Wilder just missed a trip to the World Series, losing to powerhouse Portland Baseball Club in the regional championship game in Port Angeles.
At state, Wilder opened the tourney by blasting Anderson Hay of Ellensburg 11-3 on Thursday.
Wilder had its best offensive outing of the season, scoring in double figures in three of the five games, and knocking four or five home runs out of the park during the weekend.
“The one thing we improved on was hitting the ball,” Merritt said.
The North Olympic Peninsula team never trailed against Ellensburg, leading 5-0 going into the bottom of the sixth inning.
Port Townsend’s Kyle Kelly (5-1) went the distance on the mound, striking out eight and walking just one in seven innings.
Easton Napiontek of Port Angeles smacked an important two-RBI double in the seventh inning while George Marinan went 2 for 3 with a double and three RBIs.
Justin Staight walked three times and scored two runs.
In the second game, played Friday, Wilder shaded the Shockers of Puyallup 10-8.
Wilder scored six runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to take a 10-5 lead, but the Shockers made it interesting by scoring three runs in the top of the seventh.
Clark Rose (2-1) pitched the final two innings to pick up the win. Rose also has two saves on the year.
Straight started on the mound, and threw the first four innings, giving up just one run.
Straight also swung a mean bat, going 3 for 4 with a leadoff home run, a double and he scored three runs and had an RBI.
Napiontek also had a mighty swing as he went 3 for 4 with two home runs, a double and three RBIs. He had a homer in the fourth and another in the sixth.
Brady Konopaski went 1 for 2 with a run and an RBI.
Later on Friday in the third game, the River Dogs nipped Wilder 9-7 to take the No. 1 seed into Saturday’s bracket play.
The two teams were tied 7-all through five innings but two runs by the River Dogs in the sixth sealed the deal for them.
Cole Uvila pitched the first five innings. Relief pitcher Jake Hudson (7-7) took the loss.
Marcus Konopaski went 3 for 4, scoring two runs.
Marinan went 2 for 3 with a home run, while Kelly hit a double and scored a run.
In the championship semifinals on Saturday, Wilder earned the trip to regionals by pounding Anderson Hay 14-2.
“Anderson Hay had run out of pitching,” Merritt said.
Napiontek (2-1) went the distance on the mound, giving up just two runs on five hits while striking out seven in five innings.
Napiontek also led at the plate, going 2 for 2 with a double, three RBIs and three runs.
Marcus Konopaski was 2 for 3 with three RBIs and three runs. Marinan had a two-RBI double, while Larson Chapman went 2 for 3 with two RBIs.
Later Saturday in the championship game, Wilder ran out of gas in a 9-2 loss to River Dogs.
Straight went 3 for 3 in the game.
