Junior River Dogs earn shot at World Series
REDMOND — With just three practices under their belt The Junior River Dogs captured the state title for 16-year-olds on Saturday in Redmond in a 12-4 rout of the Sammamish Green Machine.
The Junior River Dogs finished the tournament with a 3-0 record. They recorded an 11-4 victory in the first game over the Mt. Rainier Reds on Thursday and a 12-9 victory over Sammamish on Friday.
"It is a pleasure to have been selected by Randy Boruff to coach these kids," head coach Bill Walker said. "
Four players from Moses Lake — Chase Hunter, Matt Valdez, Zach Vasquez and Brett Frederickson — and two from Ephrata — Austin Chamberlain and Jim Yeager — contributed heavily towards the success of the team.
Hunter pitched a total of 7 and 2/3 scoreless innings of relief during the tournament, six of which came in the championship game.
Valdez played four positions during the tournament: second base, short stop, center field and right field. He also had the best defensive play of the tournament.
It came during the championship game. In the first inning, with one out, a runner on third base and four runs already in, Valdez caught a fly ball in the outfield. The runner on third tagged and tried to score but Valdez threw a strike to the catcher at home plate, to end the inning and the Green Machine Rally.
Brett Frederickson helped lead the offense. In the championship game he went 2-for-3 with two RBI.
Vasquez became a leader in the dugout. He routinely led the team in cheers, including the team favorite of "go dogs on three."
Chamberlain contributed to the teams pitching. He tallied four innings of relief in the second game of the tournament versus Sammamish. He also contributed via his bat, going 2-for-2 in the game.
In the championship game Chamberlain started at second base and went 2-for-3.
Yeager played as a backup infielder and saw time in the first game. He went 1-for-1 in the game.
"The team is gelling and everyone is getting along well and accepting their new role," Walker said.
Their victory in the state tournament has earned the Junior River Dogs a berth into the regional tournament, held in Moscow, Idaho this weekend.
"The tournament director thinks we're one of the strongest teams at the tournament," Walker said. "We really would like to win the tournament and go to Texas for the World Series
Play starts on today at 7:30 p.m. and their first opponent is the host team, the Moscow Bears.
It is a pool bracket and the winners of each bracket will face each other in the championship game.
The winner of the tournament will represent the Pacific Northwest Region at the 16-year-old World Series, held in Weimar, Texas.