Peninsula pickleballers dominate
GIG HARBOR — A total of 14 North Olympic Peninsula pickleball players came home with medals at the Washington State Senior Games.
Five players won multiple medals at the games.
Steve Bennett of Port Angeles won two gold medals and one silver.
He teamed with Port Angeles’ Bill Averill to win the age 70-74 men’s doubles title, won the singles crown in that age group and earned a silver in mixed doubles with Betty Hendricks of Port Angeles.
Arvo Johnson and Bob Sester of Sequim each won two gold medals.
Johnson earned a win men’s singles and doubles.
Sester won his medals in men’s and mixed doubles.
Sequim’s Sandi Gunn and Beverly Hoffman also won two gold medals apiece.
Gunn teamed with Port Ludlow’s Ken Easterbrook to win the 60-64 mixed doubles title and with Port Angeles’ Yen Chen to claim that age group’s women’s doubles championship.
Hoffman won gold with teammate Janice Ramsey of Port Townsend in the 70-74 women’s doubles division. She also won a mixed doubles title.
Other medal winners are silver medalists Lois Mahaney and Pat Weber of Port Angeles in 70-79 women’s doubles, and bronze winners Nita Davidson and Sam Minkoff of Port Angeles in the same division.
Pickleball games are played at the Vern Burton Center, 308 E. Fourth St., in Port Angeles, from 9 a.m. to noon Monday through Friday (holidays and special events excluded).
For more pickleball locations, visit www.pickleball.com.
Olympic gets ready
LACEY — The Olympic 14U baseball team prepped for this week’s Pacific Northwest Babe Ruth Regional Tournament at Volunteer Field by stepping up and playing well against older competition.
The team of players from Port Angeles, Sequim and Forks went 3-1 to win its pool play bracket at the wood-bat Puget Sound Collegiate League Invitational.
Olympic will open Regional play today at 5:30 p.m. against Helena, Montana.
In winner’s bracket play, at the PSCL Invite, Olympic scattered five hits and five walks but couldn’t produce any offense in a 9-0 loss to 18U Crimson Cannons to finish 3-2 overall.
Milo Whitman was tagged with the loss after allowing nine runs in two innings.
Timmy Adams came on in relief and gave up one hit, no runs, no walks and struck out two during his two innings of work.
Ethan Flodstrom, Timmy Adams, Derek Bowechop, Nathan Miller and Derek Dunaway all collected a hit for Olympic.
“We played extremely well against older teams and that was the first time we swung wood bats,” manager Rob Merritt said.
“Our coaching staff is impressed with our progress and we are headed in the right direction as a team.”
Olympic stomped the 17U Enumclaw Avengers 10-1 to open pool play.
A six-run second inning did the job for Olympic.
Olympic scored on an RBI single by Slater Bradley, a walk by Ethan Flodstrom, an RBI single by Derek Bowechop, an RBI single by Milo Whitman and a two-run single by Brody Merritt.
Lucas Jarnagin looked sharp on the mound, allowing just three hits in his five innings pitched.
Derek Bowechop added a late RBI double for Olymic.
Olympic dropped it’s second game 14-4 to Reality Sports 18U.
Olympic took a 4-1 lead highlighted by a two-run double by Brody Merritt, but couldn’t hang on.
Merritt nearly tossed a no-hitter in a 5-1 win against Alaska 15U., losing his shot by allowing a seventh-inning single.
He walked four and struck out seven in his first complete game of the year.
Lucas Jarnagin racked up two RBIs on two hits for Olympic.
Flodstrom collected a pair of hits and Adams and Bowechop also had hits. apiece.
Bowechop brought home the eventual winning run for Olympic in a 7-4 win against Alaska 16U.
He finished with two hits and three RBIs.
Bradley pitched 4 2/3 innings in relief and allowed two runs to pick up the win.