CHEHALIS – Spenser Dorsey charged home.
Sumner catcher Bryan Adkins played the ptich that got away perfectly off the backstop, securing it in his glove and diving to home plate.
Dorsey, the North Thurston senior, adjusted his headfirst slide, twisting slightly in an attempt to avoid Adkins’ tag.
A cloud of dust materialized. It was close. Dorsey, with his right hand still on home plate, and Adkins, with his glove resting atop Dorsey’s arm, both turned to the umpire.
Out.
Adkins leaped to his feet as the Spartans began their celebration, a 5-4 win over the Rams in the Class 2A state quarterfinals Saturday at W.F. West High School.
Sumner, champion of the 2A South Puget Sound League, advances to the state semifinals for the first time in school history.
The Spartans will play Lynden, a 1-0 winner over W.F. West in the quarterfinals, in one semifinal matchup at 7 p.m. Saturday at County Stadium in Yakima.
“This team has just been resilient all season,” said Sumner coach Casey Adcox, whose squad defeated Aberdeen, 1-0, in the first round. “We play four sophomores and two freshmen. It’s been a roller coaster and we’ve had our ups and downs, but this team has continued to improve all season long. That’s a very good North Thurston team we played today.”
North Thurston (17-8) defeated W.F. West, 5-4, last weel for its first district championship in 10 years.
“It’s a tough way to lose,” Rams coach Lance Baker said. “You have the tying run 90 feet away, a close play at the plate with the winner moving on to the semifinals. You really can’t ask for much more.”
The Rams led 3-0 after four innings – getting an RBI from Ben Reece in the third and a two-run single from Tyler Ridgeway in the fourth.
North Thurston sophomore Ryan Mets finished with 10 strikeouts, fanning the first five batters.
Sumner scored four runs in the fifth – three coming with two outs – with Adkins getting the Spartans on the scoreboard with an RBI double.
Christian Parsons, who also took over pitching duties in the fourth inning for starter Brandon Boyd, drove in two runs with a double.
Luc Powers-Hubbard capped Sumner’s big inning with an RBI single, giving the Spartans their first lead, 4-3.
A Chris Maez RBI in the top of the seventh gave Sumner a two-run cushion.
Reece and Dorsey opened the Rams’ half of the inning with back-to-back one-out doubles before Hayden Maliska’s sacrifice fly cut the deficit to 5-4.
North Thurston began the day by defeating Fife, 4-1, in the first round, getting a stellar all-around performance from Ridgeway.
The junior pitched a complete game, giving up one earned run off three hits with nine strikeouts while walking one.
Ridgeway was equally impressive at the plate, going 2-for-2 with a double and scoring twice.
Reece went 2-for-2 with two runs and an RBI against the Trojans, while teammate Dorsey drove in a run.
The Rams scored twice in the bottom of the first, but Fife was able to cut the deficit in half at 2-1 in the fifth.
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