W.F. West's Olivia Dean, Jessica McKay, Kassidy Grandorff and Ali Graham celebrate their victory over Ellensburg during the State 2A Softball Tournament Quarterfinals Friday, May 29, 2015 in Selah, Washington.
W.F. West's Roni Braun dives into third base during the State 2A Softball Tournament Friday, May 29, 2015 in Selah, Washington.
W.F. West coach Mike Keen runs back to hold up a runner after Kassidy Grandorff scores for the Bearcats in the third against Ellensburg during the State 2A Softball Tournament Friday, May 29, 2015 in Selah, Washington.
W.F. West's Tessa Wollan (5), Ali Graham (8), Jessica McKay (9) and Kassidy Grandorff celebrate their seven-run rally in the third against Ellensburg during the State 2A Softball Tournament Quarterfinals Friday, May 29, 2015 in Selah Washington.
Pe Ell-Willapa Valley's Dakota Brooks is greeted at home by her teammates after her second home run against Friday Harbor during the State 2B Softball Tournament Friday May 29, 2015 in Yakima, Washington.
W.F. West's Roni Braun is greeted by her teammates at homeplate after her home run against Ellensburg in the third inning during the State 2A Softball Tournament Friday, May 29, 2015 in Selah, Washington.
SELAH — For one inning it felt like the Bulldogs might have found the formula to hold the Bearcats at bay.
It was after that first inning that W.F. West started doing what they do best. The Bearcats put together 11 runs in just two innings of work and proceeded to deny the Ellensburg offense at every turn, wrapping up an 11-4 quarterfinal win in the State 2A Softball Tournament here on Friday.
The Bulldogs started things off, singling and seizing the rare opportunity of an overthrow to first base and a pair of sac-flys to put runners in scoring position. Ellensburg squeezed in a run via a Korteney Durand single before the frame was brought to an end.
The Bearcats mounted a run, stringing together a pair of hits. However, the Bulldogs remained aware, stifling runners on third base twice in a row before a fly-out ended the first inning more prematurely than the Bearcats would have liked.
The Bulldogs added on to things with a leadoff solo homer from Kalli Fahey, but couldn’t manage more than that.
The Bearcats remained in waiting for the golden opportunity, and in the bottom of the second stanza, they seized it.
Roni Braun began the charge, hitting a double to find immediate scoring position, followed by a Tessa Wollan single and a Kassidy Grandorff single to bring Braun home. Jessica McKay found her way on to load the bases, and Olivia Dean sealed the deal with a triple to empty them for 3 runs.
W.F. West coach Mike Keen could feel the excitement mounting in the dugout as the surge began.
“The girls were going crazy,” Keen said. “It was like they were waiting for it, like ‘Let’s just explode.’”
After a 4-run second inning, the Bearcats proceeded to repeat their performance and then some, moving through the entire lineup in the third. Reynolds lead off by reaching via an error in right field, opening the door for Braun to bolster the momentum once more, homering deep to tack on 2 more runs.
This was nothing new at this point for Braun, who has been lights out from the plate this postseason and claims the excitement has been mounting for a while now.
“Honestly, I’ve been pumped all week,” Braun laughed. “They keep making fun of me because I keep saying how excited I am. I have faith in my team and we got it under control and we did what we do.”
Braun ended the night with a 3 for 4 performance, scoring twice to go along with 2 RBIs.
The Bearcats continued to dominate the inning, stringing together seven hits and taking advantage of two Bulldog errors for a 7-run rally.
The success wasn’t just due to excitement, however. The Bearcats remained disciplined at the plate, something Keen was quick to point out.
“We were just patient and sat back on our pitches,” Keen noted. “We didn’t chase anything and they kind of threw the ball a few times in places that didn’t help their cause.”
Other offensive highlights belonged to McKay with a 4 for 5, 1 RBI and 2-run performance, while Dean notched 5 RBIs on 3 for 4 hitting.
After the third inning, the Bearcats coasted but remained vigilant on the defensive end to hold off the Bulldogs. Ellensburg plated a run with a sac-fly in the third and another solo homer, this time from Durand, but couldn’t manage much else.
Braun credited her teammates, noting that a slow start or obstacle fails to faze the Chehalis squad.
“We never lose faith in each other,” Braun said. “If we have one bad inning, it’s gone as soon as it’s over and on to the next one. I have no doubt in our abilities on either our defense or offense.”
Freshman pitcher Ashlee Vadala received the start for the Bearcats and went the distance, adjusting to the state atmosphere as the game continued, earning the praise of Keen.
“Ashlee didn’t have her best stuff early on and then she kind of worked into it,” Keen said. “It’s tough when you throw freshmen out there like that, and she responded.”
With the win, the Bearcats make their way to the semifinals matchup, where they will face Othello in a semifinals rematch from last year. In their previous meeting, the Huskies defeated the Bearcats, 9-3, to send W.F. West to the consolation bracket.
Two more wins and the state championship once more comes into the clutches of the Lady Bearcats. Keen, however, is familiar with the territory and well aware that it’s a step-for-step affair.
“We always take it one game at a time because if you look down the road, you’re not going to get there,” Keen said.
The Bearcats and the Huskies will face off in Selah today at 10 a.m.
Note: W.F. West pounded Port Angeles 15-3 in the first round of the State 2A tournament. The Roughriders hit a 3-run homer in the third inning to cut the lead to 5-3, but W.F. West knocked in 10 runs over the next two frames and got a walk-off grand slam from Ali Graham to end the game in five innings and advance to the quarterfinals.
