AMERICAN LEGION BASEBALL: Wilder A in the state championship round

Published 5:00 pm Tuesday, July 25, 2023

Editor’s Note: Wilder A beat the NW Sting 12-11 on Tuesday and is in the championship round, playing for a chance to go to state championshp game at 2 p.m. Wednesday. If Wilder wins, they move on to a second game at 5 p.m. for the state title.

SPOKANE — The Wilder A Baseball Club suffered its first loss at the American Legion state tournament, falling 12-2 to the Kennewick Phantoms on Monday night.

Wilder A (17-12 overall, 3-1 at state) is still alive, but now must win out. The Olympic Peninsula team played NW Sting on Tuesday. Results of that game were after press deadline. You can go to cmg-northwest2.go-vip.net/peninsuladailynews or look in Thursday’s sports section for results.

Against Kennewick, Wilder A actually stayed close until the fifth inning, when the Phantoms erupted for seven runs.

“Yesterday, we just ran into a good team. I think we’ll bounce back and play good baseball today,” said coach Jadon Seibel.

Wilder A is very familiar with NW Sting, having gone 3-1 on the season against the Seattle-based team that plays in the same Area 1 League that Wilder A is in. Wilder A won games by the scores of 10-0, 7-2 and 10-6. The one loss was a bit of a heartbreaker, in which Wilder A had a 10-4 lead but fell 11-10 as the NW Sting came from behind in the late innings.

If Wilder A loses Tuesday, the team’s run at state is over. If Wilder A wins, the team is in the state championship today against the winner of Kennewick and Almira-Coulee-Hartline. That game would be held at 4 p.m. with a potential second game afterward — if it’s the Kennewick Phantoms, Wilder A would have to beat them twice to claim the state championship. If it’s Almira-Coulee-Hartline, Wilder A would only have to win once because they already beat ACH 5-4 early in the tournament.

In Monday’s game, Brayden Martin went 2-for-2 with a run scored, while Carson Waddell hit a double and scored a run. Ryland Proiette and Carston Seibel each had RBIs.

Kennewick Phantoms 12, Wilder A 2

Ken. 1 0 1 3 7 x x — 12 8 1

WA 0 0 1 1 0 x x — 2 5 1

Pitching

Wilder A — Campbell 3.1 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, K; Swenson IP, 4 H, 6 ER; Buerer 0.2 IP, H, 2 ER.

Hitting

Wilder A — Martin 2-2, R; Waddell 1-3, 2B, R; Proiette 0-2, RBI; Seibel 0-2, RBI.