Local teams fall short at league tournament

All hail the South.

May 13, 2008 12:05 am
Kentlake third baseman Brooke Evans skids into second as Emerald Ridge shortstop Delsey Burgi drops the ball during a tie-breaking two-run rally Saturday at the Service Club Ballfields in Kent.
Kentlake third baseman Brooke Evans skids into second as Emerald Ridge shortstop Delsey Burgi drops the ball during a tie-breaking two-run rally Saturday at the Service Club Ballfields in Kent.

All hail the South.

That proved to be the case Friday and Saturday during the South Puget Sound League tournament at Service Park in Kent.

The league’s South Division banged around its North counterparts, nabbing the top three seeds for this Friday and Saturday’s West Central District tournament. In a tournament that provided plenty of surprises — or, more specifically, shocks — North champion Kentlake lost both of its match-ups, falling to Emerald Ridge in its tournament opener, 5-4, and then to Puyallup, 7-2.

“(The South) stuck it to us this weekend,” lamented Kentlake coach Greg Kaas, whose team entered the tournament with a 17-1 overall record.

The North won four of 10 games from the South. But the fact that the none of the North’s top three teams — Kentlake, Jefferson and Kentwood — cracked the top three in the tournament was a bit staggering.

“They had a very good showing. That’s a little scary for us up in the North,” added Kaas, whose Falcons will make an unprecedented 11th straight trip to the district tournament this weekend at Sprinker Recreation Center in Spanaway.

Rogers (19-3) went on to capture the title and snag the top seed, drubbing Emerald Ridge, 10-0. The Jaguars head to district with a 16-4 record.

Puyallup (13-5) took the third seed, followed by Jefferson (16-6), Kentlake (17-3), Kentridge (12-9), Curtis (11-11), Tahoma (10-13), Kentwood (13-7) and Graham-Kapowsin (9-10).

All 10 of the teams that qualified for the SPSL tournament earned automatic berths to district.

However, that didn’t make the final results any easier to swallow.

“I think (the North) just struggled this weekend,” said Kentwood coach Jason Wisor, whose team nabbed the ninth seed with a 6-4 win against Graham-Kapowsin. “We have some good teams that just hit a tough spot on offense. I think we’re pretty worn out from beating each other up all year.”

Despite that, there were a handful of highlights from Friday and Saturday’s action.

Tahoma freshman Sammii Jimenez delivered the pitching performance of the tournament, throwing a four-hit shutout in a 7-0 victory against Kentwood on Friday. It’s the first time in three tries this season that the Bears have beaten the Conquerors.

Meanwhile, Kentridge, despite its opening 8-5 loss to Puyallup, showed plenty of offense, knocking off Graham-Kapowsin, 10-0, and Curtis, 5-2, before falling to Jefferson, 3-1.

Savannah Bommarito picked up both wins for the Chargers, and teammate Chelsea Alfano collected four hits, two runs and three RBIs in the two games combined.

“Our offense came alive,” Kentridge coach Julie Taylor said. “We hit the ball well against Graham-Kapowsin and against Curtis.

“I was hoping we could go a little higher, but sixth seed will be fine.”