VANCOUVER — Wilder Junior couldn’t have gotten off to a much worse start, not only in the Clackamas Clark Invitational 16U championship game, but to the tournament as a whole.
But, the ending was glorious.
The Wilder Junior boys bounced back twice, from a poor opening game where they gave up six walks in the first inning and a bad first inning in the championship game, to take the title in tournament Sunday.
It was Wilder Junior’s second straight tournament championship as the boys finished their season winning 11 out of their last 12 games. They ended the season with a record of 22-11.
Wilder Junior beat the Timberjaxx 9-4 in the championship game, roaring back after giving up four runs in the first inning.
Coach Rob Merritt said the Wilder Junior kids didn’t panic and simply kept competing, and they have always been that way.
“I’ve coached these kids for five years now. They just know how to win,” Merritt said.
In the title game, after the Timberjaxx got up 4-0 in the first inning, Tyler Bowen came in to pitch in the third inning and slammed the door shut the rest of the way, giving up zero runs and just three hits over the last five innings while striking out five.
“He stifled them,” Merritt said.
Merritt said the Timberjaxx had a solid starting pitcher, but Wilder Junior took an approach of forcing him to throw a lot of pitches and getting his pitch count up. Wilder chipped away at the lead with a pair of runs in the second, then blew up for three runs in the fourth and three more in the fifth to take command of the game.
Lucas Jarnigan, who had a rough pitching outing earlier in the tournament, more than made up for it in the title game, going 2 for 4 with two runs scored and two RBIs. Tanner Lunt was 2 for 4 with a run scored, Brody Merritt was 2 for 3 with a run scored, Timmy Adams was 1 for 2 with two RBIs and a run scored and Isiah Getchell was 1 for 2 with two RBIs.
Earlier Games AIM 12, Wilder Jr. 4
On Friday, especially in the first inning against AIM, winning the title couldn’t have looked more distant. Wilder Jr. gave up six walks and four runs in the first inning in a 12-4 opening game loss in its pool play opener. Coach Merritt said starter Jarnigan has pitched well for Wilder all season, but just struggled against AIM’s patient hitters, who worked several counts to 3-2 and fouled off a number of pitches.
Milo Whitman was 1 for 2 int he game with an RBI, while Brody Merritt was 1 for 3 with a run scored. Lunt and Bowen each had hits for Wilder, which managed just four hits in the whole game.
Wilder 4, PCB Zips 1
After that, Wilder roared back with three dominant wins, outscoring their opponents 23-3 and giving up just eight hits over the next 18 innings.
In the second game of pool play, Wilder got an outstanding pitching performance from Slater Bradley, who went six innings, giving up just one hit and two walks and one earned run. Brody Merritt came in the seventh to pick up the save.
Bradley also went 2 for 3 at the plate with a run and three RBIs, essentially accounting for all of Wilder Jr.’s runs. Whitman was 1 for 2 with an RBI, Jarnigan 1 for 3 with a run scored and Ethan Flodstrom was 1 for 2 with a triple and a run scored.
“We really went after that game,” coach Merritt said.
After the split in pool play, Wilder Jr. was seeded sixth. The Peninsula boys then had to, in order, play the No. 3, No. 2 and No. 1 seeds en route to the title.
Wilder 11, Showtime 0
Wilder Jr. crushed No. 3 seed Showtime 11-0 thanks to a nine-run third inning. Pitcher Brody Merritt went the distance, giving up two hits and two walks in four innings, while striking out five.
Bradley continued with his hot bat, going 3 for 3 with a double and three RBIs. Lunt was 1 for 2 with two runs scored and an RBI. Bowen was 1 for 2 with a run scored and an RBI and Nathan Miller was 1 for 1 with two runs scored and two RBIs.
Wilder 8, NW Futures 2
This game was actually close until the seventh inning, when Wilder Junior erupted for seven runs to blow it open against the No. 2 seed to qualify for the championship game.
Bradley again did a lot of damage at the plate, going 1 for 3 with a double and three RBIs. Bowen was 2 for 3 with a double and an RBI, Ethan Flodstrom was 2 for 4 with an RBI, Merritt was 1 for 3 with a runs scored, Jarnigan was 1 for 3 with a run and an RBI and Michael Grubb was 1 for 1 with a run scored.
A trio of Wilder pitchers did great, holding NW Futures to just three hits. Timmy Adams went 5 1/3 innings, giving up two runs on three hits, four walks and two strikeouts. Merritt pitched a perfect 2/3 inning, then Whitman picked up the victory in the seventh, pitching one inning, striking out two with no hits and a walk.
Also of note: In the five games at the Clackamas Clark Tournament, Wilder Jr. made a total of four errors.
