The weekend wrap!

Good Monday morning. We have a busy weekend wrap for you this morning. We lead off with some softball.

The Puyallup-based AI Bandits Breer 14U girls’ club softball team took the Medal of Honor tournament title last night at Sirius Sports Complex in North Bend. The Bandits won the USA Softball of Seattle-sanctioned event outscoring a pair of teams with Valley players by the combined count of 31-0 in semifinal and championship-round games. AI beat Fall City-based KB Riley 10-0 then took care of Snohomish-based Snohomish Shock Campbell, featuring Tolt Middle School’s Olivia Lowell, 21-0.

The Shock and KB, along with Snoqualmie-based Wildcats Fastpitch Club Johnson, represented the Valley in this weekend’s tournament. KB, coached by Valley resident – and Mount Si HS grad Chris Riley – and the WFC team both have large contingents of players attending schools in the Snoqualmie Valley and Riverview School Districts.

In action leading up to last night’s games, WFC was held to one hit in their playoff game with the Auburn-based Washington Acers Trippy, and the Johnson team was eliminated with a 13-1 loss. Lacy Johnson had the lone WFC hit in the contest, also scoring the team’s lone run. Trippy then was eliminated in the semifinals by the Shock by a 7-2 final. Lowell in that game was 1-3 with an RBI and earlier yesterday had a pair of two-hit games for the Shock in wins over a second Acers team and one from Woodinville-based Absolute Blast.

KB just to get to the semifinals had to rally from behind for a 9-8 win over Freedom Fastpitch from south King County. Snoqualmie Middle School’s MacCaden Gillespie singled to walk it off in the bottom of the sixth to complete a three-run comeback. Kylie Kinnee scored the game-winning run on that single by Gillespie, who has spent time this season with KB in addition to her regular team from the SFC Spartans program, who was off this weekend. They then were held to just three hits in their semifinal loss to the Bandits. Likewise, the Shock were also held to three hits by the Bandits in their title game loss – Lowell had one of those hits.

A congrats from us to the players, coaches and families from the Bandits organization on their tournament win. Elsewhere around softball yesterday:

Valley players lead teams to tournament wins in SnoCo: Two area 14U teams used contributions from Valley players to score wins at the USSSA Spring Training tournament in Snohomish County.

The Washington Ladyhawks Carter used a strong effort from Tolt Middle School’s Madison Davis to take the tournament’s “Gold” bracket title with a 4-1 win last night over the SFC Lightning from Seattle. Davis had two hits and drove in a run pacing the Puyallup-based Ladyhawk squad. Bellevue’s Stod’s Storm took home the tournament’s “Silver” division title with a 9-3 win over the southwest Washington-based Northwest Reign. Valley middle-schooler Lyla Taylor pitched this game and two other games prior to it for the Stod’s team yesterday, managing to go 3-0 on the day allowing seven runs on 15 hits striking out 14 in a little more than 10 innings pitched in the three games.

Good stuff and a congrats to both young ladies on their efforts for their teams yesterday, and to the teams, their coaches and families on their tournament crowns.

Also, in 12U action at the tournament, Wildcats West fell in a heartbreaker 5-3 to the Northwest Grapettes Fleury from Kirkland. NWG scored three runs in the final inning to walk it off and eliminate WFC from the event.

Valleyite Carter sparks blowout: In college action, a first-inning bases-clearing double by senior Michaela Carter sparked Fordham University’s ladies, and they rolled to a 12-4 win over the University of Massachusetts to close out a weekend set in Amherst, MA, yesterday. Carter, from Duvall and a 2019 Cedarcrest HS grad, is a starting outfielder for the Rams and finished 1-3 with that double and the three RBI’s.

In other news on this Monday:

Basketball: Valley family again celebrating success in March Madness
Yesterday was another special day at one Valley household, as they got to see their kids succeed once again in the NCAA Division I basketball tournaments.
The Heide family, which resides in North Bend, has two kids competing in the national events this year – Sela, who is a junior at Oregon State University on their women’s basketball team, and Miles, a freshman at San Diego State University, on their men’s team. Both teams played yesterday, and both teams won advancing to the next round this coming weekend.

First up, it was 2020 Mount Si HS grad Sela and her Beavers as they played in front of a sold-out house at the on-campus Gill Coliseum down in Corvallis, OR. Players, especially during the later portion of the season as OSU made their push toward the NCAA’s, implored fans and the community to “Fill Gil.” And when they filled the building, it usually meant success for the ladies as they were able to feed off the energy the fans provided them. That proved once again to be the case yesterday. OSU fended off the University of Nebraska 61-51 and moved into the round of 16. This will be coming up in Albany, NY on Friday.

The third-seed Beavers will not know their opponent until later today, so they’ll be by a TV most likely watching the game of interest, between the second-seeded Notre Dame and seventh-seeded University of Mississippi. That game is on ESPN at 11am our time this morning. Sela did not play in the game yesterday despite it at times looking like that was possible. But OSU’s offense struggled a bit in the second and third quarters, allowing the Cornhuskers to stay in it. The Beavers, though, exploded out of the gate in the fourth thanks to some key three-pointers, and they were able to finish the job and advance.

Last night, it was Miles and his Aztecs having a much easier time in their game with Yale than they did in their first-round win over the University of Alabama-Birmingham. SDSU broke out of the gate strong and cruised to an 85-57 win at Spokane Arena over the Ivy League champion Bulldogs. Miles played limited minutes with one assist to his credit. He is a 2023 Mount Si alum. SDSU advances to meet the University of Connecticut in a rematch of last season’s NCAA title game. It’s on Thursday at 4:30pm and will be on TBS. The game will take place at the TD Garden in Boston, home of the Boston Celtics.

So, perhaps some jet setting to the Northeast is on deck for this local family, who are now carrying our community’s college basketball postseason torch. Good stuff.

Baseball
Linn-Benton 2, Lane 1 (game one, doubleheader): L-B took the first of two over their Oregon rivals down in Eugene, OR, paced by sophomore Aidan Dougherty. The 2022 Mount Si HS grad from Snoqualmie went 2-5 with a run scored pacing the victors.

Everett 3, Bellevue 2 (game one, doubleheader): The Trojans took a 3-0 lead after three and held on to take the first of two over the Bulldogs in Bellevue. Valleyites Gabe Villaflor and Gavin Yost each had a hit for Bellevue in this one.
Whitworth 9, Willamette 2: The Pirates took the rubber match of the weekend series with the Bearcats at home in Spokane. Junior Kevin Corder tripled, walked and drove in two runs for Whitworth. He is a 2021 Mount Si HS grad from Snoqualmie.

Southern Indiana 8, Tennessee Tech 1: A four-run third gave the host Screaming Eagles command and they cruised at home over the visiting Golden Eagles in Evansville, IN, giving them the weekend series. Senior Troy Baunsgard, he of North Bend and a 2020 Mount Si HS grad, was 0-3 with a walk in this one.

Linn-Benton 3, Lane 0 (game two, doubleheader): L-B pitcher Gabe Brabec tossed a no-hitter in this one striking out seven as L-B got the sweep. Dougherty was 1-4 with a run scored for the victors.

Everett 9, Bellevue 1 (game two, doubleheader): Freshman Tristan Aasland got dinged up a bit on the hill in this one for Bellevue, with the 2023 Mount Si alum from North Bend allowing five runs, two earned, on seven hits in 4 2/3 innings of work walking two and striking out four as the Trojans cruised to the win and doubleheader sweep. Villaflor, a sophomore from Duvall, and Yost, a freshman from Fall City and fellow Mount Si Class of 2023 grad to Aasland’s, both went hitless in the game for the Bulldogs.

Lacrosse
Losses for Valley high school boys’ teams: Mount Si and Cedarcrest High School’s boys’ lacrosse teams fell in action this weekend. Cedarcrest’s crew fell 18-5 to Stanwood last Friday night. Eli McCall unloaded for the Spartans scoring eight goals in the game. Henry Hammer and Oliver Summerson each had two goals for the Red Wolves. Mount Si’s squad dropped an 11-5 exhibition loss on Saturday night to Claremont, from the Vancouver, B.C., Canada area. Luca Toldo had two goals for the Wildcats in that one. Cedarcrest opens its home schedule tonight against Kamiak at Big Rock Park in Duvall while Mount Si is at Genesee Park in Seattle tomorrow to meet Seattle Academy. A note here and that is that as lacrosse is not a sanctioned high school sport in Washington by the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association, both Mount Si and Cedarcrest’s programs are privately operated and have no official connection with their respective high schools.

Mesa ladies fall at home: In college action yesterday, Colorado Mesa University’s women took an 18-7 loss at home in Grand Junction, CO, to the University of Indianapolis from Indiana. Junior Emme Rezoski, she of Duvall and a 2021 Cedarcrest HS grad, played defense in the game for CMU and won three faceoffs.