Eastlake Doubles 2011 KingCo Win Total

The 2012 KingCo 4A baseball season is a week into the books after Thursday's slate of games...

Crest Division
Eastlake 4, Issaquah 3 - Senior John Armour provided the game-winning hit as the Wolves scored twice in the bottom of the 7th inning to walk-off on Issaquah, 4-3. The win pushed Eastlake's record to 2-0 and doubled their KingCo conference win total from just a season ago. Four Eastlake ptichers combined to keep the Eagles bats in check, with senior Alexander Chen picking up the win after working a scoreless top of the seventh. Senior Ethan Kalin was the tough luck loser for Issaquah, going the distance allowing just four hits. The offense was paced by Brandon Mahlovich, who had two hits, a double, and drove in all three Eagle runs. Eastlake finds itself alone atop the Crest Divison after the first week of league play.

Skyline 4, Redmond 2 - The Spartans came out on top of a pitchers' duel, scoring four times in the bottom of the sixth inning to top the Mustangs, 4-2. The game was scoreless through five innings, with seniors Matt Lunde (Skyline) and Peter Hendron (Redmond) matching zeroes. The 'Stangs would break through in the sixth when sophomore Brandon Burditt scored on a passed ball. Skyline did their damage in the bottom half once Hendron left the game. Senior Connor Gilchrist's bases loaded single plated two giving Skyline their first lead at 2-1. Junior Matt Sinatro followed with an RBI single, and after another run scored on a wild pitch, Sparta found themselves up 4-1. Redmond would threaten, bringing the tying run to the plate, but could not muster a comeback. Lunde picked up the win, allowing just 1 hit and the 1 earned run while striking out 8. Hendron worked five shutout innings with eight strikeouts, but did not factor in the decision.

Newport - BYE

Crown Division
Woodinville 7, Bothell 1 - Senior Spencer Greer kept the Cougar bats in check, allowing just five hits and a run while striking out six as the Falcons moved to 2-0 with a 7-1 win over the defending 4A state champs. Woodinville jumped out early with four runs in the bottom of the first, with Shea Donlin, Matt Laitala and Beau Vinterun all driving in runs. Greer would do the rest, allowing just a 4th inning run in his six innings of work. Donlin finished the day with 2 hits and the RBI, while senior Rex Carlin collected 2 of Bothell's 5 hits.

Inglemoor 9, Ballard 0 - Danny Larsen spun a 1-hit shutout and Tyler Beahan and Josh Seefeld had two hits a piece as the Vikings evened their KingCo record at 1-1 with a 9-0 win over Ballard. Inglemoor broke a close game open with a 5-run fourth inning and relied on Larsen to finish things off. He wouldn't disappoint, allowing just the 1 hit while not walking a single Beaver hitter.

Garfield 5, Roosevelt 2 - Junior shortstop Chandler Honican collected three hits and three RBI, helping his Bulldogs bounce back from an opening day loss with a 5-2 win over Roosevelt. Collin Evanson was the winning pitcher, allowing 2 runs (1 earned) over four innings of work. He combined with two other Garfield pitchers to hold the 'Riders to just two hits. Zach Ward chipped in with two hits and also picked up the save on the mound, working a scoreless seventh inning. Both teams find themselves at 1-1 after the first week of KingCo play.

Strong Pitching Highlights 4A Openers

Pitching was the name of the game on Tuesday, with 9 of the 10 teams holding their opponents to five runs or less. Each winning team allowed no more than 3 runs, with two of the teams tossing shutouts. Let's get to the highlights from KingCo 4A Opening Day:

Crown Division
Roosevelt 1, Bothell 0 - Four Roughrider pitchers combined on a 4-hit shutout as Roosevelt made a single run in the bottom of the first stand up in a 1-0 win over the defending 4A state champion Cougars. Zach Naon scored the lone run of the game, scoring from first on Graylin Derke's first inning triple. Nick Ferguson was the winning pitcher, with Derke recording the final two outs of the contest to earn the save. For Bothell, Brady Mickelson was the tough luck loser, allowing just 3 hits and 1 earned while striking out 9 Roughriders. Rex Carlin had half of Bothell's four hits, including a double in the fourth inning.

Ballard 4, Garfield 2 - Caleb Jaeger struck out 8 in a complete game victory, as Ballard opened up KingCo play with a 4-2 win over the Bulldogs. Jaeger scattered four hits and a walk, allowing two earned runs in his seven innings of work. The Beavers got off to a hot start, scoring twice in the first on an error and an RBI double by Nelson Cooper. Rory Graf-Brennen doubled home two more runs in the second to stake Ballard to the 4-0 lead. Garfield would score twice in the fifth on an RBI double by Liam McFeely and a run-scoring single by Sam Kennard to cut the gap in half. However, Jaeger would finish strong, retiring 6 of the final 7 Garfield hitters to preserve the season-opening win.

Woodinville 13, Inglemoor 2 - The Falcons made a statement in their first KingCo game of 2012, scoring 10 runs in the first two innings en route to a 13-2 win over Northshore rival Inglemoor. Woodinville put six runs on the board before the Vikings had a chance to bat, and added four more in the second inning. A three-spot in the fourth would extend the lead to 13-0 and the Falcons would cruise from their for the 5-inning victory. Seniors Shea Donlin (Washington State commit) and TC Florentine each had 2 hits for the Falcons, while Oregon State signee Marty Luchenbach worked four innings for the win. Dustin Bradshaw took the loss for Inglemoor.


Crest Division
Newport 4, Issaquah 3 - The Knights scored twice in the top of the 7th inning to break a 2-2 tie and hang on for a hotly contested 4-3 win over their rival Issaquah Eagles. Issaquah jumped out early on Newport senior starter Billy Sahlinger, with RBI doubles from Blake Jones and Ethan Kalin. However, the Eagles would not score again until the seventh. Newport clawed their way back with single runs in the 4th and 6th innings to tie the game before the 2-run 7th inning rally. Issy would score once in the final frame to cut the lead to 1, but Aaron Sandefur shut the door, preserving the win for Newport. Senior southpaw Trevor Creek worked a shutout sixth inning to pick up the win, while Sahlinger was 1-2 with an RBI and 3 walks on the day.

Eastlake 5, Redmond 0 - Eastlake started the 2012 KingCo season off on the right foot, knocking off the defending Crest Division co-champion Mustangs 5-0 at Hartman Park. Junior Josh Barokas picked up the win for Eastlake, while sophomore Mason Pierzchalski was 2-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI. Adam Cline was handcuffed with the loss for Redmond, which got a double from sophomore Lucas Eliason.

Skyline - BYE

KingCo 4A Opening Day!

Today marks opening day for the KingCo 4A conference, with 10 of the league's 11 teams in action. Here's a quick look at today's schedule:

Garfield @ Ballard, 3:45 PM

Newport @ Issaquah, 3:45 PM

Bothell @ Roosevelt, 3:45 PM

Woodinville @ Inglemoor, 6:00 PM

Eastlake @ Redmond, 6:00 PM

The KingCo 4A preview will be up today or tomorrow as time allows. Looking forward to an exciting year of 4A action.