SEQUIM — Port Angeles softball coach Randy Steinman knew he had a talented and youthful roster coming back after a trip to the state tournament last season.
The depth and interchangeable nature of that talent, and the speed in which the Roughriders (6-0, 11-0) have come together to play at a high level this season, has been a welcome surprise.
Those qualities came to the forefront in Port Angeles’ 10-2 Rainshadow Rumble victory against rival Sequim on Wednesday.
The Riders weren’t perfect on the mound or in the field, but they stayed composed and didn’t allow a early 2-0 second-inning deficit to rattle them.
Sequim (6-2, 9-4) started off playing small ball against Port Angeles’ hard-throwing sophomore pitcher Nizhoni Wheeler, bunting to get two players aboard in the first inning and drawing out the pitch count in the second inning.
Sisters McKenzie and Jordan Bentz drew consecutive walks for the Wolves to open the second frame, and Sequim kept up the small-ball strategy with Emily Copeland laying down a bunt toward third base.
The Riders’ third baseman Taylar Clark charged and fielded the bunt cleanly, but after checking the lead runner heading to third, her throw to first base was wide, allowing Sequim to score two runs.
“They jumped on us and played it pretty beautifully in the second,” Steinman said.
The Wolves then got runners on the corners with one out before Wheeler regrouped and struck out Mary Lu Clift and Kaylee Gumm to end the Sequim threat.
Steinman had a simple message for the Roughriders in the dugout after conceding the lead.
“Two runs? We’ve scored more than two runs every game,” Steinman said to his team.
“Don’t worry about those two runs, hold them at bay, play our game.
“And that’s what they did. We came out and got clutch hits and went from there.”
After an Emily Johnson single, an Alicia Howell infield single and a bunt from Clark loaded the bases, Port Angeles looked to be sitting pretty in the top of the fourth.
Wheeler then came to the plate looking to help her own cause but grounded out to Sequim’s Olivia Kirsch at third.
Kirsch made a quick throw to get the force out at home plate, and then catcher McKenzie Bentz quickly threw to first to get Wheeler out for a double play.
It seemed like the Riders might come away with nothing after a promising start to the inning, but they were just getting going.
“Lauren Lunt, our starting catcher, is out with an injured elbow, so our backup, freshman Brennan Gray comes up with runners on second and third and gets a big hit to tie the game up at 2-2,” Steinman said.
“And then she comes up later and gets another one.
“Just a great day for her. That’s the thing about this team, no matter who you put in, they will contribute.”
After a walk by Alyssa Wetzler, one of the Riders’ veterans came through. Senior Carly Gouge nailed a line drive to right field that was misplayed and ended up as a two-run triple.
Jaidyn Larson then brought Gouge home with a single, and Port Angeles had a 5-2 lead, which was all they needed at the plate with Wheeler starting to hit her spots with regularity on the mound.
“I would have liked to have less walks from Nizhoni, but they were definitely behind her pitches today,” Steinman said.
Wheeler allowed just two singles, striking out eight and walking six.
Most of the free passes came after Wheeler got out to pitcher-friendly 0-2 and 1-2 counts against the Wolves.
RBI singles from Clark, Wheeler and Johnson pushed the Riders to an 8-2 advantage, and a passed ball and bad throw to first brought home two more Port Angeles insurance runs to account for the final tally.
Steinman agreed when asked if he thinks team depth was his squad’s biggest strength.
“I do, I really do, Steinman said.
“There’s no one real standout difference between my starters and the bench. The players are pretty similar.”
The Riders now sit in the Olympic League’s driver’s seat, with a two-game advantage and head-to-head tiebreakers against second-place Sequim and third-place Olympic.
“I knew we were young, but I knew we had great talent,” Steinman said.
“So if we could have everybody stay healthy, and it’s been a big loss to have Lauren go down, but there’s our depth coming through. And Brennan steps in and does a wonderful job.
“I knew once we started jelling as a team we could play with anyone. We just jelled a lot quicker than I thought.
“It’s just been amazing. They started fitting positions and coming together, and that’s been a great thing, how quick the team has come together.”
Port Angeles hosts Bremerton (3-4, 4-7) today, while the Wolves visit Kingston (2-4, 5-4).
Port Angeles 10, Sequim 2
Port Angeles 0 0 0 5 2 3 0 — 10 11 2
Sequim 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 2 2 7
WP- Wheeler; LP- Montelius
Pitching Statistics
Port Angeles: Wheeler 7 IP, 0 ER, 2 R, 2 H, 8 K, 6 BB.
Sequim: Montelius 5 1/3 IP, 10 R, 11 H, K, 2 BB; Kirsch 1 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 2 K, BB.
Hitting Statistics
Port Angeles: Gouge 2-5, 3B, 2 RBI, R; Larson 2-3, 2 BB; Gray 2-4, 2B, 2 RBI, R; Johnson 2-5, RBI, R; Steinman 2B, R; Wheeler RBI single.
Sequim: Montelius single; Bourm single.
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Sports reporter Michael Carman can be contacted at 360-452-2345, ext. 5250 or at mcarman@peninsuladailynews.com.