PORT ANGELES — Wilder Baseball made a bang yet again at its own Firecracker Classic tournament.
Wilder scored in the bottom of the seventh inning to avenge two earlier losses to Blaze Baseball of Gig Harbor and win the 13th annual Dick Brown Memorial Firecracker Classic 6-5 on Monday evening at Civic Field.
The North Olympic Peninsula elite Senior Babe Ruth team won its own tourney for the seventh year in a row and 12th time in 13 years.
Wilder had control of Monday’s game until the final two innings.
The host team led 5-1 going into the sixth inning but gave up four unearned runs for a 5-5 tie.
Cody Sullivan reached base on an error in the bottom of the seventh to start the winning rally.
He went to second on a wild pitch and a walk later he came home on an Easton Napiontek single down the line.
“That was a great win for us,” Wilder coach Rob Merritt said.
“It was good for team building. The kids learned a lot about playing to the last out.”
9-2 tear
Wilder won the eight-team tourney by going 4-0 and improving to 9-7 after opening the year at 0-5.
Wilder now has gone 9-2 in the past 11 games.
Three pitchers combined for a five-hitter as Napiontek started on the mound and went five innings, giving up just one earned run and two hits while striking out seven and walking two.
He left with a 5-1 lead.
Sullivan pitched the sixth inning, a victim of Wilder errors as he gave up four runs, none of them earned, on two hits and three walks.
Sullivan struck out two.
Austin McConnell of Chimacum (2-3) threw the seventh inning to pick up the victory. He fanned one batter and gave up no hits and no runs or walks.
Napiontek was tough at the plate, too, going 2-for-4 with two RBIs, including the game-winner, and he scored a run.
Cole Uvila went 2-for-2 with two doubles and an RBI.
Wilder now will travel to Clackamas, Ore., to play in the 12-team Nike Classic on Thursday through Sunday.
Wilder opens play against West Linn, Ore., on Thursday at 12:15 p.m. and then plays Albany, Ore., at 12:30 p.m. on Friday.
