It wasn’t until just before the end of the Tuesday’s Metro cross over game that Lake Washington felt they had things in hand.
Down 5-3 to Bishop Blanchet in the sixth inning, the Kangs put together a sparkling defensive play to change the tide, and eventually win the game. Lake Washington beat Blanchet 8-5 to earn a berth into the 3A state tournament, beginning this weekend.
“It was a back and forth game,” said head coach Derek Bingham. “We just never got over the hump, every time we’d get close they’d score again, but at the top of the sixth Chris Moore threw a guy out at home. We took that momentum and scored five in the bottom of the inning.”
With his first pitch in the sixth inning, after relieving start Bob Cruikshank, fellow captain Spencer Jackson allowed a big fly hit, making it seem as if the Blanchet runner on third was headed home to extended the lead. But Chris Moore made the catch in the outfield, throwing it to catcher Steve Semler, ending the Braves chances at bat.
From there the Kangs took control, scoring five runs in the bottom of the sixth to take the game, and the state berth.
“It’s been a goal of ours since the beginning of the season, and the guys were really excited Tuesday night,” said Bingham. “They earned this and now it’s 16 teams and we’re all on equal footing.”
Lake Washington will face Hanford on Saturday, May 21 in the first round of the state tournament, in Richland. The game begins at 1 p.m.
The team found itself battling for the last berth from District 2 after a KingCo championship game loss to Mount Si. While they lost 1-0 to the Wildcats, Lake Washington turned around and beat Mercer Island 6-2 in the consolation game to earn their chance against the Braves.
Days earlier the Kangs faced Sammamish in the second round of the KingCo tournament, which they won 10-1. That game too required a change of momentum for the team, thanks largely to two home runs from Zach Johnson.
“The first one was the biggest one just because we weren’t sure what we were getting offensively,” said Kangs head coach Derek Bingham. “We were kind of struggling, leaving some guys on base and our best guy had just gotten out and then Zach comes up just uncorked it. I think everybody took a sigh of relief and just realized that ‘hey this is just another game’. A lot of these guys are new to the playoffs, so it’s a new experience for them and it’s nice to get that kind of confidence early and then take off from there.”
A win on Saturday against Hanford would move the Kangs into the second round of state. Bingham said the team headed out of town on Friday, giving them time to get a practice in Friday night before the game on Saturday.
“I’m glad it’s the 1 p.m. game and not 10 a.m. so it lets us have a more normal day than getting up early,” said the coach. While the team doesn’t travel every week, he said he hoped their trip to a tournament in Arizona earlier in the season will prove helpful.
“We just need to keep doing what we’re doing and stay sharp,” he said.
A win would push the team into the Saturday afternoon game, also in Richland, against the winner of the Southridge vs. Kamiakin game.
