The Kids become men’s softball upper division champs
CALEB PEREZ | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 10 months, 3 weeks AGO
The Kids come together after becoming upper division champions in the Moses Lake Men’s softball league. The championship round was between the number two seeded The Kids team and the number one seed Desert Dawgs.
CALEB PEREZ/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
A Dawgs player runs for first base during the second game of the upper division championships. The Dawgs earned a victory in their first game of the night against The Kids, which put the team into the final game to decide the division champs.
A Kids player bats during the first inning of the second game against the Desert Dawgs. The Kids will face off against an All-Star team made up of selected players from all the other teams in the league.
The Desert Dawgs pitcher tosses the ball from the mound during the upper division championships. The Dawgs entered this game following their victory during the championship qualifying bracket last Thursday.
From the outfield, a Kids player prepares to throw the ball back toward the diamond during the first game of the upper division championships.
A Dawgs player catches a high ball in the outfield during the team’s first game against The Kids in the upper division championships.
A player from The Kids prepares to hit the ball during the championship game against the Dawgs.
MOSES LAKE – Moses Lake Men’s softball season ended Monday evening when the Desert Dawgs faced The Kids in a doubleheader for the upper division championships. The competition was close, but The Kids came out on top to become upper division champions.
“We did good. We hit the ball when we needed to. We locked down,” said The Kids team captain Sakiel Garza. “A lot of scoreless innings on defense, which was good. A lot of just taking our base one at a time.”
The Kids entered the night with the advantage as the higher placed team, only needing to win the first game to become champions. The Dawgs entered Monday’s matchup coming off of their Thursday victory against the Ten Pin Brewts.
Game one came down to the final innings as both teams kept the competition close throughout. The Dawgs held The Kids to zero runs in the final inning of the first game to earn a 13-12 victory and put the tournament into one final tiebreaker game.
“Game one, we were up and then they came back fighting,” said Kids player Kevin Garza. “But we said let's regroup, let’s restart this.”
The second game started very similarly with both teams keeping pace with each other throughout each inning. Both teams started off strong, making multiple scoring hits in the first few innings.
This time, The Kids held the Dawgs to a few scoreless innings, giving them the advantage and earning The Kids the 18-17 victory to become the upper division champs. Saki said that the team’s ability to lock down on defense was the key to their victory.
“Our sticks were there all game, but just locking down the defense,” he said.
The players said that the most important part of the men’s softball league in Moses Lake is the community that it creates.
“Getting together once a week is amazing,” said Kevin. “To come out here and play ball with other people, especially with family and friends, it’s kind of huge.”
Sakiel said that he appreciates that the league gives the players who have enjoyed playing baseball their whole lives the opportunity to keep enjoying the sport as they get older. He also said he would like to thank the sponsors Liftem, G-Force and Jab Fitness for their support this season.
The Moses Lake Men’s softball season will fully conclude with the All-Star game next Monday at 7:30 p.m. The Kids will face off against a team made up of selected players from each team.
A Dawgs player runs for first base during the second game of the upper division championships. The Dawgs earned a victory in their first game of the night against The Kids, which put the team into the final game to decide the division champs.
A Kids player bats during the first inning of the second game against the Desert Dawgs. The Kids will face off against an All-Star team made up of selected players from all the other teams in the league.
The Desert Dawgs pitcher tosses the ball from the mound during the upper division championships. The Dawgs entered this game following their victory during the championship qualifying bracket last Thursday.
From the outfield, a Kids player prepares to throw the ball back toward the diamond during the first game of the upper division championships.
A Dawgs player catches a high ball in the outfield during the team’s first game against The Kids in the upper division championships.
A player from The Kids prepares to hit the ball during the championship game against the Dawgs.ARTICLES BY CALEB PEREZ
Erickson looks back on a busy and successful four-sport high school career
WARDEN — A four-sport athlete is not someone you often come across due to the time and dedication it takes for success in one sport, but for Amaya Erickson, tackling that challenge was something she was up for in her senior season. “My family’s always been really big into sports,” said Erickson. “Both my parents have played and my siblings both play, so I guess they’re all a really great inspiration for me.”
Tigers start summer 3-1 after split with Sunnyside Christian
EPHRATA — The Ephrata Tiger Baseball Club (3-1) finished their second matchup of the season as they split a doubleheader with Sunnyside Christian Tuesday evening. “I was pleased with a lot of aspects of the doubleheader,” said Tigers Head Coach David Tempel. “The summertime is all about development and getting some experience. The good part about (Tuesday) is we were in some different situations that we haven’t seen much, so we were able to learn from those and use those to our advantage.” Sunnyside was the first on the board during game one as they put up two runs in the top of the second inning. The Tigers responded at the bottom of the third as they put up five runs to claim the lead.
Fletcher named new Eagles volleyball head coach
SOAP LAKE — The Soap Lake Eagles volleyball team will be under new leadership this fall as Erin Fletcher has been selected as the new head coach. She is following the successful tenure of the previous head coach, Nikki Noble, who helped guide the team to multiple state appearances over the years. “I’m so excited,” said Fletcher. “I’ve had the opportunity to watch these girls play the last couple years as a (referee). I’m really excited to be able to step in after Coach Noble and continue on that winning and competitive spirit that they’ve had for so long and kind of take it now to the next level.” Her love for athletics came from growing up in an athletic family of basketball players, but in second grade, she became the first in her family to start playing volleyball. From there, a passion for volleyball began to grow.