PORT ANGELES — North Mason’s march to yet another Olympic League softball title whipped past Port Angeles on Friday.
The Bulldogs knocked off the Roughriders 6-1 at a sun-drenched Dry Creek Elementary, riding the right arm of Emily Anderson in a masterful performance.
Anderson struck out 14 batters in seven innings pitched, earning her second complete game victory on the North Olympic Peninsula in five days.
That included a gritty effort in an 8-5 win at Sequim on Monday that, paired with Friday’s triumph, has North Mason sitting atop the Olympic League all by itself.
“That’s the best pitcher we’ll face all year,” Riders coach Buddy Bear said.
It would be hard to argue with that assessment given the way Anderson controlled Friday’s game.
Port Angeles (5-2 in league, 6-5 overall) threatened to score just three times all game.
The first two times — a lead-off double from Kelsey Hinsdale in the second inning and single and stolen base from Sheri Adams in the third — were quickly put down.
Hinsdale’s double was followed by three straight strikeouts, and Adams’ one-out hit and stolen base by another two K’s.
By the time the Riders were able to string some hits together in the sixth, capped by Hannah Wahto’s RBI single, they were already down six runs.
“She had a lot of movement,” Adams said of Anderson. “You don’t really know where the ball is going to end up because she has curves and changes.
“It’s hard to read.”
Adams fared the best against Anderson, going 2-for-3 with a run scored.
Yet even she wasn’t immune to the Bulldog right-hander’s talents.
Anderson did, after all, strike out every batter in Port Angeles’ lineup at least once.
Port Angeles starter Stacy Webb went the distance as well.
After a rough start — Webb gave up five runs (four earned) of the Bulldogs’ six runs in the first three innings — she settled down and kept the North Mason bats at bay.
In fact, the Riders played the Bulldogs (8-0, 9-0) to a 1-1 tie in the game’s final four innings.
“The girls recognize we can do this,” Bear said.
“We’re going up there with confidence . . . and that’s what I want.
“We’re still playoff bound, it’s just getting over these little humps. The maturity is now coming around.”
If that’s the case, it would certainly be good timing for the Riders.
Port Angeles begins the second half of its Olympic League schedule next week with games at the second- and fourth-place teams.
That includes a game at Kingston on Monday and one at archrival Sequim on Wednesday.
The Riders then close out the week at last-place Port Townsend on Friday.
“We have a good stretch of games,” Bear said. “We’re right where we need to be . . . gaining momentum for the playoffs.
We’re coming together, and that could be scary for other teams.”
North Mason 6, Port Angeles 1
North Mason 2 0 3 0 1 0 0 – 6 13 1
Port Angeles 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 1 5 1
WP- Anderson; LP- Webb (3-4)
Pitching Statistics
North Mason: Anderson 7IP (5hits, 14K, ER, BB).
Port Angeles: Webb 7IP (13hits, 8K, 5ER, HB, 0BB).
Hitting Statistics
North Mason: Stromberg 3-4 (R); Marshall 2-4 (R); Lopez 2-3 (2R), Johnson 3-4 (3RBI).
Port Angeles: Adams 2-3 (R); Wahto 1-3 (RBI); Hinsdale 1-3 (2B).
CHIMACUM 9, ORTING 8
CHIMACUM — Samantha Benner’s bases-loaded nine-pitch walk in the bottom of the seventh inning led the Chimacum softball team to a 9-8 victory over Orting in Friday afternoon’s Nisqually League game.
Natasha Kiesel led off with a walk in the seventh while Tara Peters and Krista Hathaway had bunt singles and Mallori Cossell had a pinch-hit sacrifice bunt to move a runner up.
Brittany Nelson (3-2) pitched the final three innings for the win while Arlie Petrick threw the first four innings.
Chimacum, 5-0 in league and 6-2 overall, next plays at Life Christian on Monday.
Chimacum 9, Orting 8
Orting 3 0 0 2 3 0 0 – 8 9 2
Chimacum 0 0 5 1 0 2 1 — 9 13 3
WP- Brittany Nelson (3-2)
Pitching Statistics
Chimacum: Arlie Petrick 4IP (2BB); Nelson 3IP.
Hitting Statistics
Chimacum: Samantha Benner 4-4 (2R, RBI); Cailey Snyder (HR); Cece Dietz 2RBI; Nelson 2RBI.
FORKS 16, WISHKAH VALLEY 1, 4 INNINGS
FORKS — Jillian Raven allowed just two hits in leading the Spartans to their first victory this season.
Forks (0-4, 1-5) rapped out 12 hits while winning the nonleague game.
Raven had six strikeouts while walking just two.
The game was called after four innings because of the 15-run mercy rule.
Taylor Morris went 2-for-3 for the Spartans with a double, two RBIs and a stolen base, while Raven McCann went 2-for-4 with a double, three RBIs and two stolen bases.
Gwen Gillett was 2-for-4 with a double, two RBIs and a stolen base.
The Spartans next play at home against Rainier in a doubleheader Monday.
Forks 16, Wishkah Valley 1
Wishkah 0 0 0 1 – 1 2 4
Forks 2 5 2 7 — 0 0 0
WP- Jillian Raven
Pitching Statistics
Forks: Raven 4IP (6K, 2BB).
Hitting Statistics
Forks: Taylor Morris 2-3 (2B, 2RBI, SB); Raven McCann 2-4 (2B, 3RBI, 2SB); Gwen Gillett 2-4 (2B, 2RBI, SB); Whitney Fairbanks 2-2 (RBI, SB); Jordan Grahn 1-2 (3B, RBI).
NORTH KITSAP 16, PORT TOWNSEND 0
POULSBO –The Vikings held the Redskins to two hits and took advantage of eight Redskin errors in Friday’s Olympic League game.
The Redskins next play at Olympic in Silverdale on Monday.
BASEBALL:
CHIMACUM 12, ORTING 2
CHIMACUM — Austin McConnell and Quinn Eldridge combined for six RBIs to spark the Cowboys to the easy Nisqually League win Friday.
Chimacum (5-1, 8-2) scored seven runs in the first inning and was off to the races after that, cruising to a five-inning mercy rule win.
Quinn Eldridge also went the distance on the mound, striking out five, walking one and giving up no earned runs.
Dylan Brown was perfect at the plate, going 3-for-3 with a triple and RBI. McConnell went 3-for-4 with a triple, double and three RBIs.
Quinn Eldridge was 2-for-3 with three RBIs. Devin Manix went 2-for-3 with two steals.
The Cowboys next play at Life Christian on Monday.
Chimacum 12, Orting 2, 5 innings
Orting 1 1 0 0 0 – 2 5 2
Chimacum 7 2 1 0 2 — 12 13 3
WP- Quinn Eldridge; LP- Carmichael
Pitching Statistics
Chimacum: Eldridge 5IP, 5K, 1BB, 0ER.
Hitting Statistics
Chimacum: Dylan Brown 3-3 (3B, RBI); Austin McConnell 3-4 (2B, 3B, 3RBI); Quinn Eldridge 2-3 (3RBI); Devin Manix 2-3 (2SB).
PORT ANGELES 6, NORTH MASON 3
PORT ANGELES — The Roughriders earned an Olympic League home-and-away split with the Bulldogs.
North Mason won 5-1 in Belfair on Thursday, but the Riders (4-5, 4-6) turned around to win at home Friday.
A.J. Konopaski improved to 2-1 on the year as he fanned 10 batters in six innings, walking none and allowing just six hits.
Konopaski also had a big day at bat with a home run, RBI, run scored, stolen base and walk. He was also hit by a pitch, as he went 2-for-2.
Keenan Walker and Derek Crain both were 2-for-3.
Port Angeles had eight hits and no errors in the game.
The Port Angeles JV pounded North Mason 19-0.
The Riders next play at Kingston on Monday.
Port Angeles 6, North Mason 3
North Mason 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 – 3 7 2
Port Angeles 0 0 2 0 2 2 x — 6 8 0
WP- AJ Konopaski (2-1); LP- Joe Nys
Pitching Statistics
Port Angeles: Konopaski 6IP, 3 runs, 6 hits, 10K, 0BB.
Hitting Statistics
Port Angeles: Konopaski 2-2 (HR, RBI, SB, BB, R, HBP); Keenan Walker 2-3 (2SB, BB); Derek Crain 2-3 (R, SB).
FORKS 15, WISHKAH VALLEY 5
FORKS — The Spartans pounded out 11 hits in earning the five-inning victory Friday.
Forks ran out to a 13-0 lead after three innings to cruise to the mercy-rule finish.
The Spartans next host Rainier on Monday.
Forks 15, Wishkah Valley 5, 5 innings
Wishkah Valley 0 0 0 2 3 – 5 2 4
Forks 2 4 7 2 x — 15 11 3
WP- Jon Gimlin
Hitting Statistics
Forks: Michael Dean 2-3, D.
NORTH KITSAP 6, 19, PORT TOWNSEND 3, 11
POULSBO — The winless Redskins were ahead of the unbeaten Vikings late in the first game.
North Kitsap (10-0, 13-0), however, scored four runs in the sixth inning to stay perfect on the year.
The second game was a makeup of a rainout during spring break.
Port Townsend pitcher Ryan Unbedacht had a strong outing in the first game, giving up just six hits to powerhouse North Kitsap in six innings.
Cameron Robinson had a double, scored two runs and had a stolen base for the Redskins in the first game.
Eric Thomas scored three runs, had two RBIs and stole two bases in the second game.
Port Townsend next plays at Olympic on Monday.
TRACK:
SEQUIM EARNS 5 MEDALS
SNOHOMISH — The Wolves brought home five medals from the Eason Invitational on Saturday.
The girls team took four places while Thomas Gallagher captured fifth place in shot put for the boys’ only medal.
Gallagher beat his personal best by almost four feet with a distance of 49 feet, 5 ¼ inches.
Allison Cutting led the girls with sixth place in the 800 meters with a time of 2 minutes, 24.96 second, while Samantha Whiteside took seventh in pole vault (9-6).
Haleigh Harrison was eighth in high jump (5-0). The 4-by-400 relay team of Harrison, Whiteside, Cutting and Audrey Lichten took seventh with a season-best 4:18.30.
The Wolves next host Port Townsend and Klahowya on Thursday.