Two wins away: Gig Harbor bound for Yakima after handling Inglemoor in 3A state quarters
Gig Harbor center fielder Danny Porras had a problem. His leg was cramping and he was struggling to run at full speed.
The solution? A moonshot home run over the short right field fence at Lincoln High School in the first inning of Gig Harbor’s Class 3A state tournament quarterfinal game against Inglemoor on Saturday afternoon.
After watching the ball sail into the adjacent softball field at the sparkly, all-turf Tacoma Public Schools complex, Porras was free to jog around the bases as leisurely as he pleased.
That home run scored two and gave Gig Harbor an early lead. The Tides never looked back, racking up four more runs in the third and fourth innings and cruising to a 6-2 win. The win sends Gig Harbor through to the 3A state tournament semifinals, which will be held next weekend in Yakima.
“It was a tough at-bat,” Porras said. “He just hung that changeup right there. It felt awesome to get the team going.”
Jake Cuda threw a complete game, going seven innings, allowing six hits, two runs, walking one and striking out five. After surrendering a run in the first, he settled into a groove.
“Outstanding,” Tides’ coach Ben Sleeter said of Cuda’s start. “He got a second wind about the fifth inning, really found a groove. He was really in command of that thing.”
Cuda said he felt he got stronger as the game went on.
“At first, I just wasn’t feeling myself,” Cuda said. “But it’s not about how you start, it’s about how you finish. … pounded the strike zone. … trust my defense.”
Porras and shortstop Jayce Corley both had multi-hit games for the Tides. Gig Harbor defeated West Seattle in the state tournament opening round game on Saturday prior to the quarterfinal win over Inglemoor, moves to 24-2 on the season and will face No. 3 Kennewick in the state tournament semifinals, 10 a.m. Friday, May 30 at Parker-Faller Field in Yakima.
The winner will face the winner of No. 1 Mount Vernon and No. 4 Ballard in the state championship game, which will be played at 4 p.m. on Saturday.
“Since the start of the year, we’ve always had that goal of Yakima,” Porras said. “We all trust each other so much and no one’s trying to do too much. That’s just a great recipe for success.”
