Full Slate of KingCo Action

First off, wanted to apologize again for the lack of coverage last week on the blog. It was a crazy week and I wasn't able to keep up with all the action. Hoping to stay on top of things from here on out.

Monday was the first day of the KingCo season with a full slate of action. With both the 3A and 4A on a Monday/Wednesday/Friday schedule this week, there will be a lot of great baseball being played! Here's a look at yesterday's results.

Monday 4A Recaps
Ballard 4, Issaquah 0 - Senior Caleb Jaeger continued his tremendous run of pitching, striking out 5 in a complete game shutout as the Beavers blanked Issaquah, 4-0. Ballard scored four runs in the second inning off Eagle starter Ethan Kalin and Jaeger did the rest, scattering four hits and a walk in his seven innings of work. Stuart MacGeorge drove in two runs and stole two bases for Ballard, who evened their KingCo record at 4-4.

Garfield 5, Newport 3 - Colin Evenson allowed just 1 earned run in six solid innings and Sam Kennard was 2-for-3 with a double and 2 RBI as the Bulldogs knocked off the Knights, 5-3. Ricky Nakamura added three hits for Garfield, with Hayes Gorecki working a scoreless seventh for the save. Senior Jake Chinery had two hits for Newport, who struggled defensively, committing four errors on the afternoon.

Redmond 4, Bothell 0 - The Mustangs continued their resurgence, winning their third straight KingCo game 4-0 over Bothell. Adam Cline shutout the Cougars, allowing just 5 hits and 2 walks while striking out six. Conner Bozman was 2-for-4 with an RBI, while Steven Danek and Patrick McGrath each doubled for the 'Stangs. Bothell saw their four-game league win streak snapped.

Inglemoor 4, Skyline 2 - Inglemoor continued its strong play, downing Crest Division leading Skyline 4-2 on Monday evening. Danny Larsen was the inning pitcher, scattering 6 hits and 3 walks in 6 solid innings. He was aided by Willie Augustavo, who accounted for all four Viking runs by scoring twice and driving in two more. Patrick Harrod and Jack Valencia each had two hits for Skyline in a losing effort. The Spartans hold a one game lead over Eastlake in the Crest Division, while Inglemoor pulled to within a half-game of Woodinville in the Crown with their fourth straight win.

Eastlake 2, Roosevelt 1 - Junior Michael Staudinger's solo home run in the sixth inning broke a 1-1 tie and propelled Eastlake into second place in the Crest Division with a 2-1 win over Roosevelt. Starters Andrew Stull (Eastlake) and Graylin Derke (Roosevelt) both pitched well, but didn't factor into the decision. Josh Barokas worked three shutout innings in relief for the Wolves to pick up the win. Pitching was the story of the game, with the teams combining for just 6 hits on the afternoon.

Monday 3A Recaps
Mount Si 7, Liberty 0 - Santa Clara bound Reece Karalus continued the Wildcats amazing pitching run, shutting out the Patriots 7-0. Mount Si has not allowed a single run in the past 21 innings, allowing just a single run to Bellevue last Monday in their first 4 league games. Karalus allowed just 2 hits and didn't walk a single batter, needing just 79 pitches to go the distance. He was helped by fellow senior Trevor Lane, who finished the afternoon a perfect 4-for-4 with 3 runs scored and 2 RBI. Ben Wessel took the loss for Liberty, who is still searching for their first league win. Mount Si improved to 4-0 in league play and will look to continue their scoreless streak when they take on Sammamish on Wednesday.

Lake Washington 13, Juanita 10 - Theo Alexander's majestic grand slam in the fifth inning gave the Kangs the lead for good, as they improved to 4-0 in KingCo play with a 13-10 win over rival Juanita. The game was a classic Peter Kirk affair, with strange bounces, key plays and a ton of offense. Alexander's big blast came one inning after Juanita's Avery Britton had cleared the bases with a three-run double to put the Rebels back on top. Zach Johnson also homered for LW, with senior Ben Ciuba working the final two innings to preserve the win. Victor Mayorquin doubled and drove in three for LW, who will take on Interlake on Wednesday. Juanita, who lost their second straight league affair, got two hit nights from senior John Robinson and sophomores Bradley Close and Andy Cosgrove.

Mercer Island 8, Interlake 4 - The Islanders responded from a tough opening week with avengance, as they used a five-run third inning to down the Saints, 8-5. Senior Hunter Goldberg was the winning pitcher, and he got help from Chris Lawler (3-for-4, 2 RBI) and Matt Orehek (2-for-3, 3 RBI). Keegan Ogard and Brandon Lawler added 2 hits a piece for MI, which snapped a scoreless streak of 21 innings with the third inning 5-spot. Jake Wilson had 2 hits for Interlake, who fell to 2-2 with the loss.

Bellevue 8, Sammamish 5 - Bellevue fought back from an early deficit, scoring three times in the fifth and twice more in the sixth to topple the Totems, 8-5. Sammamish was led by the three hits of Joey Sullivan, with Paul Heywood and Ryan Hashimoto each added two hits a piece. The Wolverines win was their third straight, as they kept pace with Mount Si & Lake Washington, just one game back of the division leaders.