State slowpitch: University leads banner day for Greater Spokane League with 3A/2A title win

YAKIMA – The Greater Spokane League was the first in the state to bring slowpitch softball back as a varsity sport in the fall after 20-some years in 2005. On Saturday at Gateway Sports Complex in Yakima, it showed that to earn a trophy in the still newly sanctioned state tournament in the sport, teams still have to go through Spokane.

The league brought home three trophies: University beat Kelso 26-11 in the 3A/2A title game, Mt. Spokane beat Hermiston 13-2 in the 3A/2A third-place game and Central Valley took second after falling to Chiawana 13-12 in the 4A title game.

“The GSL certainly proved to be the (top) league in the state,” University coach Matt Connor said. “And it has nothing to do with playing year-round. It has nothing to do with you know, kids playing slowpitch at a young age. It just comes from taking the sport seriously and giving it the same effort and you know, concentrating on the same things that we do with fastpitch.”

University 26, Kelso 11: Abby Watkins went 4 for 6 with two triples, three runs and six RBIs, and the fourth-seeded Titans (21-2) topped the second-seeded Hilanders (17-1) from the Greater St. Helens League in the 3A title game.

U-Hi led 7-6 after four innings before scoring seven runs in the sixth and 11 in the seventh.

“It was everything (we wanted) and more,” Titans senior outfielder Jenna Williamson said. “It made it so much more fun being with the girls that I love.”

Williamson, who scored four runs and drove in a pair out of the leadoff spot, said the GSL teams “had targets on our backs” all weekend.

“It was an amazing experience,” senior outfielder Bethany Ray said. “I just can’t believe it. It’s unreal.”

Ray hit a two-run double early in the game and scored on the play. She finished the game 4 for 6 with three doubles, four runs and six RBIs.

“I wasn’t expecting (the extra bases), but here we are,” she said.

“Bethany has been an incredible leader for us this season,” Connor said. “She works hard. She keeps our kids in order. She has just been a spark offensively and defensively.”

Connor said that in the truncated spring season the Titans didn’t make top four in the GSL.

“We’ve talked about this all season,” he said. “We’ve talked about keeping our eye on the prize and winning the last game of the season. And we’ve come a long way.”

Chiawana 13, Central Valley 12: Senior Emily Schulhauser went 4 for 4 with a two-run home run in top of the fifth to put CV up by one late, but 10th-place hitter Leah North stroked a walk-off single to lift the top-seeded Riverhawks (20-1) over the seventh-seeded Bears (13-10) in the 4A title game.

“I’m really proud of how we played this weekend,” Schulhauser said. “I know that there were some things we could have done better, but overall I think we played really well.”

Chiawana led 11-6 after three innings.

“A heck of a tournament,” CV coach Joe Stanton said. “Chiawana came out and, you know, they punched us in the face and we got back up and kept swinging and kept fighting.

“Our league is so tough that we had to learn from the beginning that we have to scratch and claw for every base.”

CV leadoff hitter Madison Saty had two hits, including a triple, and scored three times.

Mt. Spokane 13, Hermiston 2: After losing the coin toss for home-field advantage, the top-seeded Wildcats (22-3) scored nine runs in the top of the first and cruised to a win over the third-seeded Bulldogs (14-10) in the 3A third-place game.

“Nice to end the season with a win,” Mt. Spokane coach Carl Adams said. “We had to fight through a tough first game and we came out and just put it to them a bit in (the third-place) game. So yeah, great way to end the season.”

In an earlier loser-out game, Jessica Waters hit for the cycle and her home run to lead off the sixth inning inspired a 13-run rally to turn a close game into a 25-14 win.

“We all just decided all together that we couldn’t lose,” she said of the rally.

Mt. Spokane lost 18-2 to U-Hi in a semifinal on Friday.

“We were kind of battling through resetting our reset expectations,” Adams said. “It was a funny game, couple bad hops here and there and next thing you know we’re gonna in a tight game, but they just found it found a way to get it done.”

Adams spoke on the depth of the league.

“Top to bottom, our league is really good,” he said.

“There are teams who were not here this weekend who would compete at this tournament and we know they would, there’s no question about that.”