On the fastpitch diamond Tahoma just keeps moving forward whenever it hits a bump.
And it was a bumpy road the past 10 days for the Bears with games against Kentlake and Auburn last week then Kentridge on Monday, Auburn Riverside on Tuesday, first-place Kentwood on Thursday and Federal Way on Friday, with the final two coming after the Reporter’s press deadline for the print edition.
Coach Tom Milligan thinks that if things work out the way they did when Tahoma made its way through the South Puget Sound League North teams the first time around his squad should be able to hang onto the fifth and final playoff spot.
“The most important thing is that no. 1 you can score at any opportunity in the line from one to nine,” Milligan said. “The biggest thing is to get some kids to play hard and put the ball in play. There was a small assumption that we were going to start off this year where we left off last year.”
After losing 9-1 against Kentlake last Wednesday Tahoma faced Auburn at home last Friday and pounded out hits from the outset in an 11-4 win as Tahoma continues to fight for a play off spot.
The Bears jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning then expanded the lead to 5-0 in the fourth.
For a moment in the fifth it looked like sophomore pitcher Sammii Jimenez, who had dominated the Trojans through the first four innings, might be losing her hold as Auburn closed the gap with a three run inning.
Jimenez gave up five hits in the complete game but only allowed one more run for Auburn while striking out nine as her teammates ratcheted up the offense during the next three innings.
And with a stand up double to center field in the bottom of the fifth, Jimenez led the team at the plate, with the Bears scoring five more runs taking a 10-3 lead into the sixth inning.
From there Jimenez and the Bears defense held on, forcing the Trojans to strand runners in the sixth and the seventh.
Eight Tahoma players got on base with five of them collecting RBIs. Lisa Maulden went 3-4 with 3 RBIs, Jimenez was 2-4 with 2 RBIs, Shelby Carter went 2-2 with 2 RBIs, Hayley Beckstrom went 3-5 while chipping in 3 RBIs and a stolen base. Alex Clyatt scored two runs and had two stolen bases on a 2-5 effort at the plate including a three bagger. Alyse Henkel was 1-1 with a stolen base and Jordan Walley was 1-3 with an RBI. Sherry Linett picked up three walks, stole a base and scored a run.
With the win the Bears completed a series sweep of the Trojans while improving their record to 5-6 in league and 7-8 overall.
Tahoma followed that up with a 3-2 win over Kentridge, completing its second season sweep of an opponent, with this being the first time since Milligan took over head coaching duties that his team had beaten Kentridge twice during the regular season.
Jimenez pitched another tough game for the Bears who jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning.
Natalie Spadafora scored Kentridge’s first run on a single to centerfield by Jaimie Lowrimore.
Milligan told the girls heading into the bottom of the third that “two runs isn’t going to win this game.”
He was right because the Chargers evened the scored at two runs each in the top of the fifth but all the Bears needed was one more run which they picked up in the bottom of the sixth.
Walley was at the plate with the bases loaded and two outs when a Kelli Suguro pitch got by the Kentridge catcher and Maulden scored the winning run on the passed ball to take the lead for good at 3-2.
“We needed that one,” Milligan said. “Before the game I told them, ‘You have to consider this a playoff game because if we lose, this is it.'”
