Lewis County will once again be well represented in the high school state baseball playoffs as Adna, Centralia and W.F. West all secured trips to the state tournament.
The Pirates will head to the Class 2B tournament after finishing second in district play, while W.F. West, which captured its third straight district championship, and Centralia both advance to the 2A tourney.
Adna (19-4) failed in its bid to win back-to-back 2B District 4 titles following a 2-0 loss to Wahkiakum in the championship game on May 12 and will head into state as the No. 2 seed out of the district.
The error-filled loss snapped the Pirates’ season-high 13-game winning streak and prevented them from playing at home during the first two rounds of the state tournament.
Adna, which was shutout for the first time this season in the loss to the Mules, outhit Wahkiakum, 4-3, in the setback, but were credited with four costly errors.
The Pirates will be making their second consecutive state playoff appearance and sixth out of the last seven years when they play Pacific 2B League champion Ocosta in the first round at W.F. West High School on May 19. First pitch is scheduled for 10:00 a.m.
Adna and the Wildcats (19-5) have played each other once this season, meeting in the district quarterfinals on May 8 with Adna posting a 7-3 victory after scoring four runs in the sixth inning. Ocosta claimed the district’s No. 4 seed after losing to Kalama, 20-1, in a seeding game.
The winner of the Adna/Ocosta game will play the winner of the 1:00 p.m. contest between Rainier (14-10) and District 1/2 champion Orcas Island (10-6). The Pirates won both meetings against Rainier this season.
Adna is led by Central 2B League co-MVP Conner Weed, first-team selection Sawyer Burdick and second-team picks Chance Fay, Cole Fay and Camden Ryan.
The Pirates are seeking the program’s third Class 2B state championship, having won the title in 2015 with a 4-2 victory over Colfax and in 2013 with a 5-0 shutout of DeSales.
Last year the Pirates defeated Kalama, 6-3, in the first round before losing to league rival Napavine, 12-2, in the quarterfinals.
Few teams head into the 2A state tournament with more momentum than W.F. West as the Bearcats (20-2) take an impressive 20-game winning streak into their first round match-up.
After losing its first two games this season, W.F. West has been on cruise control. Defensively, the Bearcats have registered 11 shutouts this year, including a 15-0 drubbing of 2A Evergreen Conference rival Tumwater in the 2A District 4 semifinals.
W.F. West has been equally dangerous with its bats this year, scoring 10 or more runs 11 times and surpassing the 20-run total three times.
The Bearcats found themselves in unfamiliar territory in the district title game, trailing 7-1 to 2A Greater Saint Helens League champion R.A. Long through four innings.
W.F. West, however, scored seven runs over the final three innings to earn a 8-7 victory, getting a game-winning RBI from Lane Douglass and a two-run home run from Tyson Guerrero.
Centralia (15-9) claimed the district’s third seed in far less dramatic fashion, hammering Hockinson, 11-1, to wrap up the district’s final state playoff slot.
Centralia will open up state against North Kitsap (16-7) at 10:00 a.m., while W.F. West plays Ephrata (17-7) at 1:00 p.m. Both games will be held at Wheeler Field in Centralia.
The winners of those two games will square off against each other later that day with the victor advancing to the state semifinals at Yakima County Stadium on May 25.
Should the two Lewis County schools meet in the 2A state quarterfinals it would be the fourth meeting between the programs this season. The Bearcats, who went a perfect 15-0 in 2A Evergreen Conference play this season, won all three regular season games against the Tigers, winning 7-2 on April 20, 12-0 on April 30 and 7-1 on May 1.
The Bearcats, who finished second at state last year, are making their third straight state playoff appearance and 10th out of the last 11 years. W.F. West won the 2A state title in 2010 and 2013 and third in 2009 and 2011.
Centralia, which returns to state following a one-year hiatus, won the 2A state championship in 2015 as the district’s third seed.
