TUMWATER — It wasn’t exactly a banner day for the Tumwater offense on Wednesday against Shelton, but a couple of late runs were even for the T-Birds to top Shelton 2-1 and sweep the Highclimbers.
The Thunderbirds trailed 1-0 after four, but Catcher Jones was able to tie the game in the bottom of the fifth with an RBI double.
Eddie Marson opened the bottom of the sixth with a single, and a sacrifice bunt and groundout to the right side moved him to third with two outs.
Luke Overbay stepped to the plate with the chance to give Tumwater the lead, but he didn’t even have to put the ball in play for Marson to score. A wild pitch allowed Marson to trot home and give the Thunderbirds the lead.
Luke Houk set the Highclimbers down 1-2-3 in the top of the seventh, finishing off the win with his sixth strikeout of the day.
Houk threw four scoreless innings on the mound, allowing just three hits, continuing to dominate the Shelton lineup similarly to how Derek Thompson did over the first three innings.
As the starter, Thompson walked four, and the Highclimbers were able to plate a run, but he didn’t allow a hit and he struck out six.
Tumwater coach Lyle Overbay was pleased with how Thompson looked as the starter, saying for him, it’s all about consistency.
“He’s that guy. He’s gonna be our guy,” Overbay said. “He’s got the stuff, he just has to make sure to throw strikes.”
He was just as impressed with Houk, who was on JV just last week.
“We told him ‘you gotta throw some more strikes,’” Overbay said. “And he’s been pounding the zone. It’s been fun to watch.”
They’re combined efforts on the mound kept the Thunderbirds in the game long enough to scratch a couple of runs across.
Down several starters and contributors from last year’s state title team, Overbay noted that the experience that the young guys can get in close games like Wednesday’s will carry over into the rest of the season.
“The biggest thing is that when we were down or even tied,” Overbay said. “They were still in the game and doing what they needed to do.”
Jones finished 1 for 1 at the plate with his RBI double, and Jimmy Womach, Thompson, and Marson also recorded base hits.
League play will continue for the Vikings next week, when they’ll head to Fort Borst on Tuesday for the first of a home-and-home against Centralia.
