SELAH — The Port Angeles Roughriders (22-2) came up one game short of a state softball title, losing to WF West of Chehalis 5-1 in the 2A State Tournament in the championship game.
More on the Riders’ championship game in Monday’s Peninsula Daily News.
To get to the championship game, the Riders beat Selah 6-0 Saturday morning in the 2A semifinal.
Port Angeles 6, Selah 0
SEALH — Port Angeles reached its first state softball championship and will take home its first-ever state trophy after shutting down host Selah 6-0 on Saturday at Carlon Park.
Ace pitcher Nizhoni Wheeler was on target again on the mound for the Riders.
Wheeler picked up her third straight shutout at state, striking out 15 while allowing two hits and walking one.
“The girls wanted it, you could tell out there,” coach Randy Steinman said. “They wanted it bad.
“We knew Nizhoni was going to pitch a gem, again. So we did whatever we could to score a run.”
Wheeler’s dominance quieted the Selah bench and the crowd. At one point Wheeler retired 10 straight batters, nine of them on strikeouts.
“Home town and everything else and they were just flat from the start,” Steinman said of the Vikings. “Even when it was close they were quiet.”
Catcher Lauren Lunt saw the dominance up close.
“They weren’t hitting Noni well, so I had a good feeling,” Lunt said.
The game was scoreless through three and a half innings before Port Angeles busted out the bats in a five-run bottom of the fifth inning.
“We were hitting solid, but right to them, so I knew we would get some hits on her [Selah pitcher Maddy Zerr] sooner or later,” Wheeler said.
Ashley Howell and Brennan Gray drew one-out walks and Taylar Clark lashed an RBI double down the left-field line to bring home Howell.
After an out, Sierra Robinson laid down a perfect bunt single to bring in a run and keep the inning alive.
Lunt pushed a two-run single through the gap between first and second to score Gray and Clark, and Natalie Steinman capped the inning with an RBI double to score freshman pinch runner Ella Holland.
Five runs, four of them with two outs, including three straight hits.
Clutch city.
“She [Zerr] had a nice little drop change but the second time through the order we started to figure it out,” Steinman said.
“Two walks big walks, we capitalized on that.
“CC [Robinson] put down a beautiful bunt with two outs and we just kept going.”
Lunt said the team has developed a workmanlike mentality in regard to two-out situations.
“Even at practices, we’ve said ‘Two outs, do your job,’ all year,” she said.
Erin Edwards doubled to open the sixth for the Riders and Lunt brought her home with an RBI double to account for the sixth run. Lunt led the offensive attack by going 3 for 3 with three RBIs.
Now the best team in school history will look to add to its accolades.
“Its’a cool way to end our career,” Lunt said. “It’s our last day with them, and playing in the championship is great way to wrap things up with them.”
