BlueJackets 8 Pirates 7

SILVERDALE — The Kitsap BlueJackets took game one of an important West Coast Collegiate Baseball League series Monday, knocking off the visiting Moses Lake Pirates 8-7 in a battle of division leaders.

Both teams scored early and often as a back-and-forth tussle turned into a 7-7 tie in the eighth inning. Kitsap got the eventual game-winner when Brandon Decker reached on a leadoff single, moved up on Josh Meeker's sacrifice bunt and scored on pinch hitter Keegan McCamment's single.

Moses Lake took a 2-0 lead early on, getting one in the first off second baseman Decker's error and another in the third after Zach Kim started the frame with a single and scored on Mike Capbarat's two-out base hit.

The BlueJackets took a 3-2 lead with three runs in the third, using RBI singles from Jamie Nilsen and Joey Lind, and a run-scoring groundout from Doug Buser.

The Pirates evened the score in the fourth off Billy Swanson's leadoff double and Matthew Yerby's sacrifice fly. But Kitsap knocked out starter Michael Ratigan after the fifth inning, scoring on a Buser triple and a Lind RBI single to grab a 4-3 lead.

Ratigan allowed six hits, one walk and four earned runs during his five innings of work. He also struck out three.

The see-saw affair reached its climax in the sixth as Moses Lake plated four runs to lead 7-4. The Pirates did all the damage against reliever James Douglas, getting RBI doubles from Kim and Kevin Coddington, though two of the runs were unearned because of catcher Lawson Hipps' error.

Kitsap immediately responded with a three-spot in its half of the sixth, all charged to Cam Gill, who lasted just 1/3 of an inning in relief of Ratigan. Tyler Owens had a sacrifice fly for the first run, with Nilsen's RBI single and Buser's RBI double tying the score.

Moses Lake's Ben Graham (2-2) took the loss, allowing four hits while striking out one in two innings. Graham gave up Decker's leadoff single in the eighth before getting the hook in favor of Lee Roberts.

The Pirates got the tying run on base in the ninth against Kitsap closer Joe Hagen as Coddington led off with a single. But a pop-up, fielder's choice grounder and strikeout ended the threat and earned Hagen his eighth save of the season.

Kitsap (20-11) moved two games ahead of Corvallis in the loss column for first place in the WCCBL West Division. Moses Lake (22-9), which has already clinched a playoff spot, is six games ahead of Wenatchee in the East. The team with the best record will earn home-field advantage throughout the postseason.

Tuesday's results were unavailable at press time.

After Wednesday's contest, which pits Moses Lake's Jorge Reyes (1-0, 0.00 ERA) against Kitsap's Kyle Howe (4-1, 2.11), the Pirates travel to Bellingham to begin a three-game series with the Bells on Thursday.