Moses Lake splits four state tournament games
Alyssa Balderas slaps a RBI single in the fourth inning against Battle Ground on Friday, May 30. The Chiefs won their first round matchup with the Tigers, 2-1.
SPOKANE - Improving on a season that saw a league championship, district championship and a win at the state tournament can be a difficult thing to do.
But after grabbing two wins at this year's 4A State Softball Tournament, Moses Lake accomplished its goal of advancing to the second day of games and placing.
"We felt we could play with anybody there and not get embarrassed and we did," head coach Dave Gregory said. "We played well and to go .500 at the state tournament and place seventh it's not bad. Is it what I wanted? No, I wanted to win it all."
The Chiefs began their tournament run with a first round game against Battle Ground.
Gregory knew that his team would have to adjust to the velocity of Battle Ground's ace, Parker Boyd.
Moses Lake's offense struggled throughout the game, but the team was still able to scratch out a 2-1 win.
After a leadoff walk by Radach and a stolen base by courtesy runner Allyson Weaver in the second inning, Balderas was able to give Moses Lake a 1-0 lead with a RBI double.
Balderas and Radach provided the offense for the Chiefs, combining for all four of the team's hits.
"Going into the game I know that coach just really wanted us ... He kept on saying, 'Choke up on the bat, choke up on the bat,'" Balderas said. "So that was kind of my mindset and that's what I was focused on and it turns out I was able to turn things around and me and Tressa were both able to get something going."
The Radach-Balderas show continued their next time up in the fourth inning when Radach hit a triple with one out.
Once again, Balderas delivered a RBI single that gave the Chiefs a 2-0 lead.
Marnie Skinner went the distance and allowed just one unearned run against the Tigers.
The sophomore looked unflappable in the circle and with the go-ahead run at the plate and the game-tying run on second in the seventh inning she induced a small pop out that fell calmly into Radach's glove to end the game.
"She pitched last year (at the state tournament)," Gregory said. "We brought her up she pitched one inning. I kind of mentioned to her that now you can't be nervous. There's no being nervous now."
Along with Skinner's dominance in the circle, the Chief defense played solid behind her and squelched any threat Battle Ground attempted to muster.
Moses Lake committed just one error against the Tigers and Balderas turned a double play of her own in the fourth inning.
"We're like family," she said. "We always are so supportive whether we make a bad play, good play we always got each other's backs and I think we really proved that she's (Skinner) a good pitcher and the defense's got her back."
Moses Lake met Bethel in the quarterfinals and the offensive struggles continued, allowing the Braves to advance, 8-2.
Bethel led 3-0 after two innings when Brittany Genuardi hit a RBI double in the first and Alyssa Olson hit a two-run home run in the second.
Peyton Ries struggled with her location and was replaced in the third by Skinner.
Down 4-0 for most of the game, the Moses Lake offense was stymied until the sixth inning. After a Jazmynn Jesse double, Radach cut the deficit in half with a screaming two-run home run that easily cleared the left field fence.
The Chiefs looked ready to add more when Balderas tripled, but Bethel was able to turn a double play after catching Balderas trying to score in a controversial call at the plate.
"She was pretty much sitting on home plate," Gregory said. "That umpire said she never got there so whatever, you get them calls every once in a while."
With all momentum gone, the Chiefs struggled defensively in the seventh and gave up four unearned runs after three errors in a row.
Moses Lake met Big Nine rival Wenatchee in the consolation bracket and proceeded to work out any frustration from the previous game. Radach hit her second home run of the tournament and the Chiefs cruised to a 14-2 win in five innings, securing a date Saturday with Richland.
However, Moses Lake's bats quieted again against the Bombers and the Chiefs' tournament run ended with a 2-0 loss.
"Believe it or not, I think our best game we played was against Richland," Gregory said. "We lost 2-0, but we were in that game from the get go."
The Chiefs threatened early when Jesse was robbed of a home run in the first inning, but were unable to get any offense going.
Moses Lake will lose five seniors from this year's team: Hailee Bishop, Baylie Signorelli, Skylar Kimbro, Cierra Nevarez and Radach.
Bishop, a four-year starter and leadoff batter, and Radach, a shoo-in for First Team All-League honors, figure to be the toughest to replace.
"She (Radach) had the most phenomenal year I've ever seen from a high school kid that I've ever coached," Gregory said. "We got people that can replace her, but her bat in the middle of the lineup is huge."
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